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 — Soul

GOLDEN TEXT: Psalm 96 : 9

“O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”

RESPONSIVE READING: Psalm 96 : 2-4, 6, 8, 10  •  Psalm 8 : 9

2.     Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

3.     Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

4.     For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

6.     Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

8.     Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name:

10.     Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

9.     O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

Lesson Sermon

The Bible

1. Isaiah 61 : 10, 11

10     I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

11     For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

2. Daniel 4 : 1-3, 28-31, 33, 34, 36, 37

1     Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you.

2     I thought it good to shew the signs and wonders that the high God hath wrought toward me.

3     How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation.

28     All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar.

29     At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon.

30     The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?

31     While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.

33     The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles’ feathers, and his nails like birds’ claws.

34     And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:

36     At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellers and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.

37     Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

3. Jeremiah 9 : 23, 24

23     Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:

24     But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.

4. Luke 14 : 3 (to 2nd ,)

3     And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying,

5. Luke 15 : 4-6, 10

4     What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

5     And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

6     And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

10     Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

6. James 1 : 19-21

19     Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

20     For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

21     Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

7. II Peter 1 : 2-8

2     Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,

3     According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

4     Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

5     And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

6     And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

7     And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

8     For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

8. I Peter 2 : 25

25     For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

Science and Health

1. 477 : 26 only

Man is the expression of Soul.

2. 310 : 14 (Science)-18, 31-2

Science reveals Soul as God, untouched by sin and death, — as the central Life and intelligence around which circle harmoniously all things in the systems of Mind.

Soul changeth not.

There is neither growth, maturity, nor decay in Soul. These changes are the mutations of material sense, the varying clouds of mortal belief, which hide the truth of being.

3. 258 : 11-15, 19-24

Man reflects infinity, and this reflection is the true idea of God.

God expresses in man the infinite idea forever developing itself, broadening and rising higher and higher from a boundless basis.

The infinite Principle is reflected by the infinite idea and spiritual individuality, but the material so-called senses have no cognizance of either Principle or its idea. The human capacities are enlarged and perfected in proportion as humanity gains the true conception of man and God.

4. 167 : 1-10

Should we implore a corporeal God to heal the sick out of His personal volition, or should we understand the infinite divine Principle which heals? If we rise no higher than blind faith, the Science of healing is not attained, and Soul-existence, in the place of sense-existence, is not comprehended. We apprehend Life in divine Science only as we live above corporeal sense and correct it. Our proportionate admission of the claims of good or of evil determines the harmony of our existence, — our health, our longevity, and our Christianity.

5. 323 : 19-32

When the sick or the sinning awake to realize their need of what they have not, they will be receptive of divine Science, which gravitates towards Soul and away from material sense, removes thought from the body, and elevates even mortal mind to the contemplation of something better than disease or sin. The true idea of God gives the true understanding of Life and Love, robs the grave of victory, takes away all sin and the delusion that there are other minds, and destroys mortality.

The effects of Christian Science are not so much seen as felt. It is the "still, small voice" of Truth uttering itself. We are either turning away from this utterance, or we are listening to it and going up higher.

6. 60 : 29-11

Soul has infinite resources with which to bless mankind, and happiness would be more readily attained and would be more secure in our keeping, if sought in Soul. Higher enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal man. We cannot circumscribe happiness within the limits of personal sense. The senses confer no real enjoyment.

The good in human affections must have ascendency over the evil and the spiritual over the animal, or happiness will never be won. The attainment of this celestial condition would improve our progeny, diminish crime, and give higher aims to ambition. Every valley of sin must be exalted, and every mountain of selfishness be brought low, that the highway of our God may be prepared in Science.

7. 311 : 7-13 (to 2nd .), 22-25

Soul is immortal because it is Spirit, which has no element of self-destruction. Is man lost spiritually? No, he can only lose a sense material. All sin is of the flesh. It cannot be spiritual. Sin exists here or hereafter only so long as the illusion of mind in matter remains. It is a sense of sin, and not a sinful soul, which is lost. Evil is destroyed by the sense of good.

When humanity does understand this Science, it will become the law of Life to man, — even the higher law of Soul, which prevails over material sense through harmony and immortality.

8. 215 : 7-10, 22-26

Soul and matter are at variance from the very necessity of their opposite natures. Mortals are unacquainted with the reality of existence, because matter and mortality do not reflect the facts of Spirit.

With its divine proof, Science reverses the evidence of material sense. Every quality and condition of mortality is lost, swallowed up in immortality. Mortal man is the antipode of immortal man in origin, in existence, and in his relation to God.

9. 124 : 14-19

The universe, like man, is to be interpreted by Science from its divine Principle, God, and then it can be understood; but when explained on the basis of physical sense and represented as subject to growth, maturity, and decay, the universe, like man, is, and must continue to be, an enigma.

10. 125 : 2-20

What is now considered the best condition for organic and functional health in the human body may no longer be found indispensable to health. Moral conditions will be found always harmonious and health-giving. Neither organic inaction nor overaction is beyond God's control; and man will be found normal and natural to changed mortal thought, and therefore more harmonious in his manifestations than he was in the prior states which human belief created and sanctioned.

As human thought changes from one stage to another of conscious pain and painlessness, sorrow and joy, — from fear to hope and from faith to understanding, — the visible manifestation will at last be man governed by Soul, not by material sense. Reflecting God's government, man is self-governed. When subordinate to the divine Spirit, man cannot be controlled by sin or death, thus proving our material theories about laws of health to be valueless.

11. 210 : 5-16

The Principle and proof of Christianity are discerned by spiritual sense. They are set forth in Jesus' demonstrations, which show — by his healing the sick, casting out evils, and destroying death, "the last enemy that shall be destroyed," — his disregard of matter and its so-called laws.

Knowing that Soul and its attributes were forever manifested through man, the Master healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, feet to the lame, thus bringing to light the scientific action of the divine Mind on human minds and bodies and giving a better understanding of Soul and salvation.

12. 120 : 4 (Soul)-6

Soul, or Spirit, is God, unchangeable and eternal; and man coexists with and reflects Soul, God, for man is God's image.

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 2025 Plainfield Christian Science Church, Independent

Table of Contents

Sunday, August 17th, 2025 — Subject: Soul

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