And as I continued to reason prayerfully, the shoulder became increasingly free. This was indeed Christ bringing healing and comfort. That verse from Hebrews came to thought, comforting me and assuring me that God's complete control over my being reached even to ``the joints and marrow.'' The immobility and pain began to disappear right then. It was my right as a perfect, complete, and wholly spiritual child of God to express unimpaired movement. What was the truth needed here? What the joints in my arm appeared to be doing or, in this case, not doing was not the issue. And his healing power illustrated the effects of living our lives in the light of God's Word.īecause I knew that this condition could be healed by prayer, I listened for God's direction. His God-controlled, God-centered, God-inspired thought replaced limited, mortal belief with the light of the Word. Jesus understood the divine reality so clearly that he could see through matter's false claim to be real and causative and could demonstrate by healing that the Word of God is the activity of ever-present good controlling every aspect of existence. Eddy, the Founder of the Christian Science Church, says of Jesus in Science and Health: ``Understanding the nothingness of material things, he spoke of flesh and Spirit as the two opposites,-as error and Truth, not contributing in any way to each other's happiness and existence'' (p. They not only heal but have set lives in radical new directions in his time and ever since. How could a shoulder joint remain painfully immobilized in the face of the quickening and invigorating power of God, divine Spirit? Christ Jesus said, John's Gospel records, ``It is the spirit that quickeneth the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life'' (6:63). I could see that God's Word could reach every aspect of my being, and there was nothing in me that could resist His power. It tells us: ``The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart'' (4:12). The Bible has a passage in Hebrews that speaks of the vitality- the ``aliveness''-and powerful effectiveness of God's Word. Because of Mary Baker Eddy's discovery, over a century ago, that there was a scientific law behind Jesus' healings, and because the understanding of that law has been made available to us all in her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, I was confident that help was literally within reach. The inconvenience, to say nothing of the discomfort, was so great I saw I needed something effective to bring immediate relief. John Morris, and others to strengthen and encourage you in your Christian faith.SEVERAL months ago I woke one morning unable to move my arm at the shoulder without a great deal of pain. Start your day with devotional readings written by Dr. JPTĭays of Praise Podcastis a podcast based on the Institute for Creation Research quarterly print devotional, Days of Praise. Jesus overcame temptation with the same power-packed Scriptures available to His followers today. While many of the Israelites failed their test, the sinless Son of God succeeded and provided an important lesson for us. The first half of Deuteronomy 8:3 says, “He humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger.” Israel’s wilderness hunger was intended to teach them that hearing and obeying God’s Word is paramount in life ( Deuteronomy 8:2-3). Both accounts incorporate the number 40 (symbolic of a period of testing) and hunger. God’s purpose in testing the children of Israel was similar to the purpose of Jesus’ wilderness test. Jesus wields this powerful “sword of the Spirit” ( Ephesians 6:17), quoting the second half of Deuteronomy 8:3 in His answer to Satan. Truly, God’s Word is “quick and powerful” ( Hebrews 4:12). The verb also occurs in the middle voice, indicating that the implied subject (the Scriptures) is its own cause and focus (experiencer and agent). It’s appropriate that the Greek verb for “It is written” ( grapho) is used in the perfect tense, which indicates a past event with ongoing effect. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.” Satan then tempted Jesus, saying, “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” Jesus’ response began with an affirmation of the abiding authority and power of the Holy Scriptures with “It is written.” In Matthew 4:1-4 we are told Jesus was “led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” ( Matthew 4:4)
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