Wednesday Readings for August 3rd, 2022
From The Bible
Isa. 35:3, 4, 6
¶ Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. 3
Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God 4
will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you.
Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for
6
in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
Isa. 40:29–31
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth 29
strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 30
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount
31
up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Mark 2:3–12
And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of 3
four.
And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the
4
roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be 5
forgiven thee.
But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts,
6
Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God 7
only?
And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned 8
within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts?
Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or 9
to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk?
But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, 10
(he saith to the sick of the palsy,)
I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. 11
And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; 12
insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.
Matt. 11:2–6, 28–30
Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his
2
disciples,
And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? 3
Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things
4
which ye do hear and see:
The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and
5
the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
6
¶ Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 28
rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: 29
and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
30
Acts 3:1–9
Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, 1
being the ninth hour.
And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid 2
daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. 3
And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
4
And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. 5
Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In 6
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet 7
and ankle bones received strength.
And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, 8
walking, and leaping, and praising God.
And all the people saw him walking and praising God:
9
Acts 14:8–10
¶ And there sat a certain man at Lystra, impotent in his feet, being a cripple 8
from his mother's womb, who never had walked:
The same heard Paul speak: who stedfastly beholding him, and perceiving that 9
he had faith to be healed,
Said with a loud voice, Stand upright on thy feet. And he leaped and walked. 10
Acts 8:5–13
Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. 5
And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip
6
spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were
7
possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.
And there was great joy in that city.
8
But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city 9
used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is 10
the great power of God.
And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them 11
with sorceries.
But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of 12
God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued
13
with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.
Heb. 12:1, 2, 12, 13
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of 1
witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that 2
was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
12
And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of 13
the way; but let it rather be healed.
Selections from Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy
SH 210:11
Knowing that Soul and its attributes were forever
manifested through man, the Master healed the sick, 12
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
15
a better understanding of Soul and salvation. Jesus healed sickness and sin by one and the same metaphysical process.
18
SH 294:6–18
If man is both mind and matter, the loss of one finger 6
would take away some quality and quantity of the man, for matter and man would be one.
The belief that matter thinks, sees, or feels is not more 9
real than the belief that matter enjoys and suffers. This mortal belief, misnamed man, is error, saying:
“Matter has intelligence and sensation. Nerves
12
feel. Brain thinks and sins. The stomach can make a man cross. Injury can cripple and matter can kill man.” This verdict of the so-called material senses victimizes
15
mortals, taught, as they are by physiology and pathology, to revere false testimony, even the errors that are destroyed
18 by Truth through spiritual sense and Science. SH 260:31–30
If we look to the body for pleasure, we find pain; for Life, we find death; for Truth, we find error; for Spirit,
we find its opposite, matter. Now reverse this action.
1
Look away from the body into Truth and Love,
the Principle of all happiness, harmony, and
3
immortality. Hold thought steadfastly to the endur ing, the good, and the true, and you will bring these into your experience proportionably to their occupancy
6
of your thoughts.
The effect of mortal mind on health and happiness is seen in this: If one turns away from the body with such
9
absorbed interest as to forget it, the body
experiences no pain. Under the strong im
pulse of a desire to perform his part, a noted actor was 12
accustomed night after night to go upon the stage and sustain his appointed task, walking about as actively as the youngest member of the company. This old man 15
was so lame that he hobbled every day to the theatre, and sat aching in his chair till his cue was spoken, — a signal which made him as oblivious of physical infirmity as if
18
he had inhaled chloroform, though he was in the full pos session of his so-called senses.
Detach sense from the body, or matter, which is only
21
a form of human belief, and you may learn the meaning of God, or good, and the nature of the immu
table and immortal. Breaking away from the
24
mutations of time and sense, you will neither
lose the solid objects and ends of life nor your own iden tity. Fixing your gaze on the realities supernal, you will
27
rise to the spiritual consciousness of being, even as the bird which has burst from the egg and preens its wings for a
30
skyward flight.
SH 227:21
Christian Science raises the standard of liberty and
21
cries: “Follow me! Escape from the bondage of sick ness, sin, and death!” Jesus marked out the
way. Citizens of the world, accept the “glori 24
ous liberty of the children of God,” and be free! This is your divine right. The illusion of material sense, not divine law, has bound you, entangled your free limbs, 27
crippled your capacities, enfeebled your body, and de faced the tablet of your being.
SH 228:11–24
The enslavement of man is not legitimate. It will
cease when man enters into his heritage of freedom, his
12
God-given dominion over the material senses.
Mortals will some day assert their freedom in
the name of Almighty God. Then they will control their 15
own bodies through the understanding of divine Science. Dropping their present beliefs, they will recognize har mony as the spiritual reality and discord as the material 18
unreality.
If we follow the command of our Master, “Take no thought for your life,” we shall never depend on bodily
21
conditions, structure, or economy, but we shall be masters of the body, dictate its terms, and form and control it with Truth.
24
SH 600:12–23 (np)
I was a great sufferer from a serious form of rheumatic 12
trouble, my hands being affected to such an extent that it was impossible for me even to dress without assistance. The trouble finally reached the knees, and I became very 15
lame and had to be assisted in and out of bed. I went to the different health resorts for the benefit I hoped to derive from the baths and waters that were prescribed by 18
physicians, but found no permanent relief. I was placed
1
under an X-ray examination, and was told that the joints were becoming ossified. I then consulted a celebrated 3
specialist, who after a thorough examination said my condition would continue to grow worse and that I would become completely helpless.
6
At that time a copy of “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures” by Mrs. Eddy was loaned me. I read it more from curiosity than with the thought of any physical
9
benefit. As the truth was unfolded to me, I realized that the mental condition was what needed correcting, and that the Spirit of truth which inspired this book was my 12
physician. My healing is complete, and the liberation in thought is manifest in a life of active usefulness rather than the bondage of helpless invalidism and suffering. I 15
owe to our beloved Leader, Mrs. Eddy, gratitude which words cannot express. Her revelation of the practical rather than the merely theoretical application of Jesus'
18
words, “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” proved to be my redeemer. I did not even have to apply to a practitioner, but am most grate
21
ful for the helpful words of loving friends. — E. B. B., Pasadena, Cal.
SH 248:12–32
The sculptor turns from the marble to his model in 12
order to perfect his conception. We are all sculptors, working at various forms, moulding and chisel ing thought. What is the model before mortal 15
mind? Is it imperfection, joy, sorrow, sin, suffering? Have you accepted the mortal model? Are you repro
ducing it? Then you are haunted in your work by vicious 18
sculptors and hideous forms. Do you not hear from all mankind of the imperfect model? The world is holding it before your gaze continually. The result is that you
21
are liable to follow those lower patterns, limit your life work, and adopt into your experience the angular outline and deformity of matter models.
24
To remedy this, we must first turn our gaze in the right direction, and then walk that way. We must form perfect models in thought and look at them continually, 27
or we shall never carve them out in grand and noble lives. Let unselfishness, goodness, mercy, justice, health, holiness, love — the kingdom of heaven — reign 30
within us, and sin, disease, and death will diminish until they finally disappear.
