The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1917-01-25

terial man is so wonderfully made,
they say, how can it be possible that
God did not make him? They feel
that it is dishonoring God to disown
the material man as His product.
Material man does seem to be won
derfully made, but you will remember
that in the many "better baby" shows
that have been prevalent about the
country, though the best and most
perfect babies are entered, it is some
times impossible TO find one that is
one hundred per cent PERFECT. If ma
terial man is the creation of God, it
is not honoring God very much to
have to admit that more than ninety
five per cent of His creation could be
vastly improved upon in the very be-
ginning.
Others maintain that God made
man perfect, and gave him his own
free will to do good or evil, but man
chose to do evil, and the evil brought
sickness and other troubles upon him;
or that man unknowingly transgress-
ed Gods laws, but that God is in no
way responsible, because had man
chosen to do right all would have
been well.
Suppose an architect put up
building and it fell down; would that
be the fault of the building? Would
you blame the building? 1t would
only fall because it was so construct
ed that it could fall Obviously, if
God made man so he could fall and he
fell it would be Gods fault, not mans.
1t should be stated also, that those
who hold to the belief that God made
man free to do either good or evil
are holding belief that is directly
contrary to Jesus teaching. He said:
81 came down from heaven, not to do
mine own will, but the, will of him
that sent me-" 81 can of mine own
self do nothing" "Whosoever shall
do the will of God, the same is my
brother, and my sister, and mother"
The Master everywhere taught that
to do Gods will constituted freedom;
for he told those who believed on him
that if they continued in his word its
truth would make them free; and
that whosoever committed sin was in
bondage to sin. 1t has ever been
bondage to be sick and sinful an to
stop being sick and sinful is to enter
into ''the glorious liberty Of the child
rem of God"
When the Master first appeared in
the synagogue, he announced his mis-
sion by apDropriating to himself that
passage from the sixty-first chapter
of Isaiah which reads, "The Spirit Of
the Lord God is upon me; because
the Lord hath anointed me to preach
good tidings unto the meek, ne hath
sent me to build up the brokenheart-
ed, to proclaim liberty to the cap
tives, and the opening of the pri-
son to them that are bound" He who
continually maintained that he could
only do Gods will and not his own,
came proclaiming liberty. Man was
never given his free will to do right
or wrong, for it has always been lib
erty to do good and bondage to do
evil.
There are those who mistakenly
maintain that Christian Science denies
the divinity of the Christ. The d.
vinity of the Christ is an unassail
able fact which is accepted and taught
from cover to cover of the Christian
Science textbook, Science and Health
with Key to the Scriptures" by Mrs.
Eddy; but if we are to accept the
teaching of the Bible on the subject
of the Christ, we shall have to admit
that the Christ had been manifested
in some degree at various times both
before and since the full and perfect
of the Christ which
Jesus presented.
Isaiah had some consciousness of
the Christ when he said, 1.-THE Spirit
of the Lord God is upon me-" for if
he had not, Jesus could not have APP
his exact words in stating
his mission as the Christ. Abraham
saw the Christ in some measure when
he became conscious of the king of
righteousness" of whom the Bible
says that he had neither beginning
of days, nor end of life; but made like
unto the Son of God" And we are told
that Moses and the children of Israel
were conscious of the Christ, for the
Bible says, they did all eat the same
spiritual meat; and did all drink the
same spiritual drink: for they drank
Of that spiritual Rock that followed
them; and that Rock was Christ" On /
page 1873 of Science and Health Mrs. |
Eddy says, abraham, Jacob, Moses, |
and the prophets caught glorious
glimpses of the Messiah, or Christ, |
which baptized these seers in the di-
vine nature, the essence of Love, >
/ fact which may be verified by care
Jul study of the Scriptures.
1t is certain that Jesus followers
Knew they were Misunderstanding the
Christ in some degree or Paul would
lot have said to the Corinthians, 1--WE
lave the mind of Christi" nor would
lie have enjoined the Philippians to let
hat Mind be in them (which was also
n Christ Jesus" In addition to this
Paul says, "The Spirit itself beareth
witness with our spirit, that we are
he children of God: and if children,
hen heirs; heirs of God, and joint
leirs with Christ If we are joint
Ieirs with Christ we shall certainly
manifest in some measure the Mind
f Christ, which Jesus manifested so
ully in healing sickness and destroy
ng sin.
Our thought of gratitude to the
faster for all that he has done for
S in showing US ''the way" grows
.reater day by day as our growth in
enables US to see more