1. Date of Lesson

2. Subject, Golden Text, and Responsive Reading

3. Lesson Sermon — The Bible

4. Lesson Sermon — Science and Health

5. The Daily Duties

6. About the preparation of this lesson

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Subject — Substance

GOLDEN TEXT: Matthew 6 : 33

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

RESPONSIVE READING: Deuteronomy 8 : 1-4 • Deuteronomy 33 : 11, 25, 27

1.     All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers.

2.     And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.

3.     And suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

4.     Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.

11.     Bless, LORD, his substance, and accept the work of his hands.

25.     Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; and as thy days, so shall thy strength be.

27.     The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.

Lesson Sermon

The Bible

1. Psalm 37 : 5 (to 2nd ;), 6, 23, 39 (the salvation)

5     Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him;

6     And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

23     The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.

39     …the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble.

2. Deuteronomy 1 : 1 (Moses) (to Israel)

1     …Moses spake unto all Israel…

3. Deuteronomy 10 : 12 (what)-13

12     …what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,

13     To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?

4. Proverbs 3 : 9, 10

9     Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:

10     So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

5. Matthew 4 : 23

23     And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

6. Matthew 5 : 2

2     And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,

7. Matthew 6 : 19-21, 24, 25 (Take), 32-34 (to 1st .)

19     Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

20     But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

21     For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

24     No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

25     Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

32     (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

33     But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

34     Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.

8. Luke 7 : 11 (he)-16

11     …he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.

12     Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.

13     And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.

14     And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

15     And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.

16     And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people.

9. Matthew 14 : 14-21

14     And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

15     And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals.

16     But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat.

17     And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes.

18     He said, Bring them hither to me.

19     And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

20     And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full.

21     And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

10. John 6 : 16 (his)-21

16     …his disciples went down unto the sea,

17     And entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.

18     And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.

19     So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid.

20     But he saith unto them, It is I; be not afraid.

21     Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.

11. Ecclesiastes 12 : 13

13     Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

12. Jeremiah 17 : 7, 8

7     Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

8     For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

Science and Health

1. 139 : 4-9

From beginning to end, the Scriptures are full of accounts of the triumph of Spirit, Mind, over matter. Moses proved the power of Mind by what men called miracles; so did Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha. The Christian era was ushered in with signs and wonders.

2. 200 : 4-7

Moses advanced a nation to the worship of God in Spirit instead of matter, and illustrated the grand human capacities of being bestowed by immortal Mind.

3. 587 : 5-8

GOD. The great I am; the all-knowing, all-seeing, all-acting, all-wise, all-loving, and eternal; Principle; Mind; Soul; Spirit; Life; Truth; Love; all substance; intelligence.

4. 468 : 21-24

Spirit, the synonym of Mind, Soul, or God, is the only real substance. The spiritual universe, including individual man, is a compound idea, reflecting the divine substance of Spirit.

5. 467 : 3 (“Thou)-10

"Thou shalt have no other gods before me." This me is Spirit. Therefore the command means this: Thou shalt have no intelligence, no life, no substance, no truth, no love, but that which is spiritual. The second is like unto it, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." It should be thoroughly understood that all men have one Mind, one God and Father, one Life, Truth, and Love.

6. 301 : 17-20

As God is substance and man is the divine image and likeness, man should wish for, and in reality has, only the substance of good, the substance of Spirit, not matter.

7. 335 : 12-15

Spirit is the only substance, the invisible and indivisible infinite God. Things spiritual and eternal are substantial. Things material and temporal are insubstantial.

8. 480 : 1-5

When the substance of Spirit appears in Christian Science, the nothingness of matter is recognized. Where the spirit of God is, and there is no place where God is not, evil becomes nothing, — the opposite of the something of Spirit.

9. 410 : 9-13

The Scriptures say, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God," showing that Truth is the actual life of man; but mankind objects to making this teaching practical.

10. 183 : 21-25

Divine Mind rightly demands man's entire obedience, affection, and strength. No reservation is made for any lesser loyalty. Obedience to Truth gives man power and strength. Submission to error superinduces loss of power.

11. 167 : 11-12, 17-19

We cannot serve two masters nor perceive divine Science with the material senses. … To have one God and avail yourself of the power of Spirit, you must love God supremely.

12. 326 : 8-11, 20-21

All nature teaches God's love to man, but man cannot love God supremely and set his whole affections on spiritual things, while loving the material or trusting in it more than in the spiritual.

Working and praying with true motives, your Father will open the way.

13. 346 : 29-32

Material beliefs must be expelled to make room for spiritual understanding. We cannot serve both God and mammon at the same time; but is not this what frail mortals are trying to do?

14. 451 : 2-4

Christian Scientists must live under the constant pressure of the apostolic command to come out from the material world and be separate.

15. 530 : 5-12

In divine Science, man is sustained by God, the divine Principle of being. The earth, at God's command, brings forth food for man's use. Knowing this, Jesus once said, "Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink," — presuming not on the prerogative of his creator, but recognizing God, the Father and Mother of all, as able to feed and clothe man as He doth the lilies.

16. 494 : 10-15

Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need. It is not well to imagine that Jesus demonstrated the divine power to heal only for a select number or for a limited period of time, since to all mankind and in every hour, divine Love supplies all good.

The miracle of grace is no miracle to Love.

17. 206 : 15-18

In the scientific relation of God to man, we find that whatever blesses one blesses all, as Jesus showed with the loaves and the fishes, — Spirit, not matter, being the source of supply.

18. 369 : 5-13

In proportion as matter loses to human sense all entity as man, in that proportion does man become its master. He enters into a diviner sense of the facts, and comprehends the theology of Jesus as demonstrated in healing the sick, raising the dead, and walking over the wave. All these deeds manifested Jesus' control over the belief that matter is substance, that it can be the arbiter of life or the constructor of any form of existence.

19. 340 : 4-14

This text in the book of Ecclesiastes conveys the Christian Science thought, especially when the word duty, which is not in the original, is omitted: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." In other words: Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: love God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole of man in His image and likeness. Divine Love is infinite. Therefore all that really exists is in and of God, and manifests His love.

20. 264 : 13-19

As mortals gain more correct views of God and man, multitudinous objects of creation, which before were invisible, will become visible. When we realize that Life is Spirit, never in nor of matter, this understanding will expand into self-completeness, finding all in God, good, and needing no other consciousness.

The Daily Duties

by Mary Baker Eddy

Daily Prayer

It shall be the duty of every member of this Church to pray each day: "Thy kingdom come;" let the reign of divine Truth, Life, and Love be established in me, and rule out of me all sin; and may Thy Word enrich the affections of all mankind, and govern them!

Church Manual, Article VIII, Sect. 4

A Rule for Motives and Acts

Neither animosity nor mere personal attachment should impel the motives or acts of the members of The Mother Church. In Science, divine Love alone governs man; and a Christian Scientist reflects the sweet amenities of Love, in rebuking sin, in true brotherliness, charitableness, and forgiveness. The members of this Church should daily watch and pray to be delivered from all evil, from prophesying, judging, condemning, counseling, influencing or being influenced erroneously.

Church Manual, Article VIII, Sect. 1

Alertness to Duty

It shall be the duty of every member of this Church to defend himself daily against aggressive mental suggestion, and not be made to forget nor to neglect his duty to God, to his Leader, and to mankind. By his works he shall be judged, — and justified or condemned.

Church Manual, Article VIII, Sect. 6

Take Notice

To Christian Scientists: — See Science and Health, page 442, line 30, and give daily attention thereto.

from Miscellany, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 237

“Christian Scientists, be a law to yourselves that mental malpractice cannot harm you either when asleep or when awake.”

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, page 422

This Bible Lesson was prepared by Plainfield Christian Science Church, Independent. It is composed of Scriptural Quotations from the King James Bible and Correlative Passages from the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, 1910 Edition, by Mary Baker Eddy.

Copyright 2023 Plainfield Christian Science Church, Independent

Table of Contents

Sunday, March 12th, 2023 — Subject: Substance

Date of Lesson

Subject, Golden Text, and Responsive Reading

Lesson Sermon — The Bible

Lesson Sermon — Science and Health

The Daily Duties

About the preparation of this lesson