The Receptive Heart
Wednesday Readings for September 14th, 2022
From The Bible
Prov. 3:5, 6
5¶ Trust in the Lordwith all thine heart; and lean not unto thine ownunderstanding. 6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Josh. 14:6 (to ,), 7, 8, 10, 11 (to 2nd ,), 13
6¶ Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son ofJephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, ...7Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lordsent me fromKadesh–barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was inmine heart. 8Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the peoplemelt: but I wholly followed the Lordmy God. 10And now, behold, the Lordhath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and fiveyears, even since the Lordspake this word unto Moses, while the children ofIsrael wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore andfive years old. 11As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as mystrength was then, even so is my strength now, ...13And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebronfor an inheritance.
Ps. 40:10, 11
10I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thyfaithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thytruth from the great congregation. 11Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O Lord: let thy lovingkindnessand thy truth continually preserve me.
Isa. 55:8–11
8¶ For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saiththe Lord. 9For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than yourways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth notthither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it maygive seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return untome void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in thething whereto I sent it.
Matt. 13:1–3, 18–23
1The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side. 2And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into aship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. 3And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sowerwent forth to sow; 18¶ Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. 19When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, thencometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart.This is he which received seed by the way side. 20But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth theword, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation orpersecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 22He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; andthe care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and hebecometh unfruitful. 23But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, andunderstandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some anhundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Mark 4:35–41
35And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us passover unto the other side. 36And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was inthe ship. And there were also with him other little ships. 37And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so thatit was now full. 38And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awakehim, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. Andthe wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 41And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man isthis, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
Mark 11:22–24
22And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. 23For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Bethou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart,but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shallhave whatsoever he saith. 24Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believethat ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
Mark 16:9–11, 14, 15, 17
9¶ Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared firstto Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils. 10And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned andwept. 11And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her,believed not. 14¶ Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraidedthem with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not themwhich had seen him after he was risen.
15And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel toevery creature. 17And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast outdevils; they shall speak with new tongues;
John 14:12, 13, 27
12Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shallhe do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto myFather. 13And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may beglorified in the Son. 27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, giveI unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
SH 46:7
The divineSpirit, which identified Jesus thus centuries9ago, has spoken through the inspired Word and will speakthrough it in every age and clime. It is revealed to thereceptive heart, and is again seen casting out evil and12 healing the sick.
SH 258:31–14
Through spiritual sense you can discern the heart ofdivinity, and thus begin to comprehend in Science the1generic term man. Man is not absorbed in Deity, andman cannot lose his individuality, for he re-3flects eternal Life; nor is he an isolated, soli-tary idea, for he represents infinite Mind, the sum of allsubstance. 6In divine Science, man is the true image of God. Thedivine nature was best expressed in Christ Jesus, whothrew upon mortals the truer reflection of God and lifted9their lives higher than their poor thought-models would allow, — thoughts which presented man as fallen, sick,sinning, and dying. The Christlike understanding of12 scientific being and divine healing includes a perfect Prin-ciple and idea, — perfect God and perfect man, — as thebasis of thought and demonstration.
SH 191:16, 24–25
The human thought must free itself from self-imposedmateriality and bondage. It should no longer18ask of the head, heart, or lungs: What areman's prospects for life? Mind is not helpless. Intelli-gence is not mute before non-intelligence. 24 The Science of being reveals man and immortality asbased on Spirit.
SH 114:23–8
Christian Science explains all cause and effect as men-24tal, not physical. It lifts the veil of mystery from Soul andbody. It shows the scientific relation of manto God, disentangles the interlaced ambiguities27of being, and sets free the imprisoned thought. In divineScience, the universe, including man, is spiritual, harmoni-ous, and eternal. Science shows that what is termed mat-30ter is but the subjective state of what is termed by theauthor mortal mind. Apart from the usual opposition to everything new,1the one great obstacle to the reception of that spiritual-ity, through which the understanding of Mind-science3comes, is the inadequacy of material terms formetaphysical statements, and the consequentdifficulty of so expressing metaphysical ideas as to make6them comprehensible to any reader, who has not person-ally demonstrated Christian Science as brought forth in my discovery.
SH 323:28
The effects of Christian Science are not so much seenas felt. It is the “still, small voice” of Truth30uttering itself. We are either turning awayfrom this utterance, or we are listening to it and goingup higher. Willingness to become as a little child and1to leave the old for the new, renders thought receptive ofthe advanced idea. Gladness to leave the false landmarks3and joy to see them disappear, — this disposition helpsto precipitate the ultimate harmony. The purificationof sense and self is a proof of progress. “Blessed are the6 pure in heart: for they shall see God.”
SH 272:3
3The spiritual sense of truth must be gained beforeTruth can be understood. This sense is assimilated onlyas we are honest, unselfish, loving, and meek.6In the soil of an “honest and good heart” theseed must be sown; else it beareth not much fruit, for theswinish element in human nature uproots it. Jesus said:9“Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures.” The spiritualsense of the Scriptures brings out the scientific sense, andis the new tongue referred to in the last chapter of Mark's12 Gospel.
SH 112:32
God is the Principle of divine metaphysics. As there1is but one God, there can be but one divine Principle ofall Science; and there must be fixed rules for the demon-3stration of this divine Principle. The letterof Science plentifully reaches humanity to-day,but its spirit comes only in small degrees. The vital part,
6 the heart and soul of Christian Science, is Love. With-out this, the letter is but the dead body of Science, —pulseless, cold, inanimate.
SH 451:8
Students of Christian Science, who start with its letter9and think to succeed without the spirit, will either makeshipwreck of their faith or be turned sadlyawry. They must not only seek, but strive,12to enter the narrow path of Life, for “wide is the gate,and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, andmany there be which go in thereat.” Man walks in the15direction towards which he looks, and where his treasureis, there will his heart be also. If our hopes and affec-tions are spiritual, they come from above, not from be-18 neath, and they bear as of old the fruits of the Spirit.SH 182:1
1The actof healing the sick through divine Mind alone, of casting3 out error with Truth, shows your position as a ChristianScientist.
SH 140:7–13
Not materially but spiritually weknow Him as divine Mind, as Life, Truth, and Love. We9shall obey and adore in proportion as we apprehend thedivine nature and love Him understandingly, warring nomore over the corporeality, but rejoicing in the affluence12 of our God. Religion will then be of the heart and not ofthe head.
SH 9:17
Dost thou “love the Lord thy God with all thy18heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”?
This command includes much, even the sur-render of all merely material sensation, affec-21tion, and worship. This is the El Dorado of Christianity.It involves the Science of Life, and recognizes only thedivine control of Spirit, in which Soul is our master,24 and material sense and human will have no place.
SH 8:28–30
We should examine ourselves and learn what is theaffection and purpose of the heart, for in this way30 only can we learn what we honestly are.
SH 15:14
In order to pray aright, we must enter into the15closet and shut the door. We must close the lips andsilence the material senses. In the quietsanctuary of earnest longings, we must18deny sin and plead God's allness. We must resolve totake up the cross, and go forth with honest hearts towork and watch for wisdom, Truth, and Love. We21must “pray without ceasing.” Such prayer is an-swered, in so far as we put our desires into practice.The Master's injunction is, that we pray in secret and24let our lives attest our sincerity.
SH 573:29
Take heart, dear sufferer, for this reality of being willsurely appear sometime and in some way. There willbe no more pain, and all tears will be wiped away. Whenyou read this, remember Jesus' words, “The kingdom ofGod is within you.” This spiritual consciousness istherefore a present possibility.