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

Listen to the reading of this Lesson

Watch on YouTube

Watch on Vimeo

PlainfieldCS.com

Subject — God

GOLDEN TEXT: Psalm 46 : 1

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

RESPONSIVE READING: Psalm 62 : 1, 2, 7, 8, 11, 12

1.     Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.

2.     He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.

7.     In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

8.     Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us.

11.     God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.

12.     Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.

Lesson Sermon

The Bible

1. Exodus 20 : 1-3

1     And God spake all these words, saying,

2     I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3     Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2. Genesis 21 : 22 (God)

22     God is with thee in all that thou doest:

3. Isaiah 41 : 10, 17-20

10     Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

17     When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18     I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

19     I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:

20     That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

4. Luke 4 : 14 (to :)

14     And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee:

5. Luke 11 : 1-4, 9-13 (to 1st ,), 13 (know)

1     And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

2     And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

3     Give us day by day our daily bread.

4     And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

9     And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

10     For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

11     If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

12     Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

13     If ye then, … know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

6. Psalm 103 : 8-13

8     The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

9     He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.

10     He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

11     For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

12     As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

13     Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

7. Acts 17 : 22-28

22     Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars’ hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.

23     For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.

24     God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

25     Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;

26     And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

27     That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

28     For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

8. II Corinthians 1 : 3-5

3     Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;

4     Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

5     For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.

9. Psalm 23 : 1-6

1     The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2     He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3     He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4     Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5     Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6     Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

Science and Health

1. 330 : 19 (God)-20

God is what the Scriptures declare Him to be, — Life, Truth, Love.

2. 332 : 4 (Father)-8

Father-Mother is the name for Deity, which indicates His tender relationship to His spiritual creation. As the apostle expressed it in words which he quoted with approbation from a classic poet: "For we are also His offspring."

3. 63 : 5-11

In Science man is the offspring of Spirit. The beautiful, good, and pure constitute his ancestry. His origin is not, like that of mortals, in brute instinct, nor does he pass through material conditions prior to reaching intelligence. Spirit is his primitive and ultimate source of being; God is his Father, and Life is the law of his being.

4. 387 : 27-32

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.

5. 275 : 6-19

The starting-point of divine Science is that God, Spirit, is All-in-all, and that there is no other might nor Mind, — that God is Love, and therefore He is divine Principle.

To grasp the reality and order of being in its Science, you must begin by reckoning God as the divine Principle of all that really is. Spirit, Life, Truth, Love, combine as one, — and are the Scriptural names for God. All substance, intelligence, wisdom, being, immortality, cause, and effect belong to God. These are His attributes, the eternal manifestations of the infinite divine Principle, Love. No wisdom is wise but His wisdom; no truth is true, no love is lovely, no life is Life but the divine; no good is, but the good God bestows.

6. 519 : 10 (Science)-16

Science reveals infinity and the fatherhood and motherhood of Love. Human capacity is slow to discern and to grasp God's creation and the divine power and presence which go with it, demonstrating its spiritual origin. Mortals can never know the infinite, until they throw off the old man and reach the spiritual image and likeness.

7. 12 : 1-2 (to ?), 22-24, 31-4

"The prayer of faith shall save the sick," says the Scripture. What is this healing prayer?

The common custom of praying for the recovery of the sick finds help in blind belief, whereas help should come from the enlightened understanding.

In divine Science, where prayers are mental, all may avail themselves of God as "a very present help in trouble." Love is impartial and universal in its adaptation and bestowals. It is the open fount which cries, "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters."

8. 13 : 10-12, 14-17 (to 2nd ,)

If our petitions are sincere, we labor for what we ask; and our Father, who seeth in secret, will reward us openly. … Even if prayer is sincere, God knows our need before we tell Him or our fellow-beings about it. If we cherish the desire honestly and silently and humbly, God will bless it,

9. 7 : 23 (God)-26

God is not influenced by man. The "divine ear" is not an auditory nerve. It is the all-hearing and all-knowing Mind, to whom each need of man is always known and by whom it will be supplied.

10. 322 : 26-30

The sharp experiences of belief in the supposititious life of matter, as well as our disappointments and ceaseless woes, turn us like tired children to the arms of divine Love. Then we begin to learn Life in divine Science.

11. 494 : 10-11

Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need.

12. 507 : 3-6

Spirit duly feeds and clothes every object, as it appears in the line of spiritual creation, thus tenderly expressing the fatherhood and motherhood of God.

13. 470 : 32-5

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.

14. 276 : 1-11, 17-24

Having one God, one Mind, unfolds the power that heals the sick, and fulfils these sayings of Scripture, "I am the Lord that healeth thee," and "I have found a ransom." When the divine precepts are understood, they unfold the foundation of fellowship, in which one mind is not at war with another, but all have one Spirit, God, one intelligent source, in accordance with the Scriptural command: "Let this Mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." Man and his Maker are correlated in divine Science, and real consciousness is cognizant only of the things of God.

If God is admitted to be the only Mind and Life, there ceases to be any opportunity for sin and death. When we learn in Science how to be perfect even as our Father in heaven is perfect, thought is turned into new and healthy channels, — towards the contemplation of things immortal and away from materiality to the Principle of the universe, including harmonious man.

15. 577 : 32-18

In the following Psalm one word shows, though faintly, the light which Christian Science throws on the Scriptures by substituting for the corporeal sense, the incorporeal or spiritual sense of Deity: —

PSALM XXIII

[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] lead-

eth 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.

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 2024 Plainfield Christian Science Church, Independent

Table of Contents

Sunday, January 7th, 2024 — Subject: God

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