Responsive Reading: Genesis 1 : 26, 27; Ephesians 4 : 4-6

26.     And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:

27.     So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

4.     There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

5.     One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6.     One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

1. Galatians 3 : 28

28     There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

2. Ezekiel 1 : 1 (to pass) (that), 3 (to priest) (and)

1     Now it came to pass … that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

3     The word of the Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, … and the hand of the Lord was there upon him.

3. Ezekiel 2 : 2-4 (to 1st .)

2     And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me.

3     And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day.

4     For they are impudent children and stiffhearted.

4. Ezekiel 3 : 27

27     But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; He that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.

5. Ezekiel 11 : 16-20

16     Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord God; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

17     Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord God; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

18     And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.

19     And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:

20     That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

6. John 8 : 12 (to Jesus)

12     Then spake Jesus …

7. John 10 : 30

30     I and my Father are one.

8. John 15 : 1-17

1     I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

2     Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

3     Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

4     Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

5     I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

6     If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

7     If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

8     Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

9     As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

10     If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.

11     These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

12     This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.

13     Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

14     Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

15     Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

16     Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

17     These things I command you, that ye love one another.

9. Ephesians 4 : 1-3, 13-16, 23, 24, 31, 32

1     I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,

2     With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

3     Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

13     Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

14     That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

15     But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

16     From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

23     And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

24     And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

31     Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

32     And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

1. 502 : 29-5

There is but one creator and one creation. This creation consists of the unfolding of spiritual ideas and their identities, which are embraced in the infinite Mind and forever reflected. These ideas range from the infinitesimal to infinity, and the highest ideas are the sons and daughters of God.

2. 515 : 21 (Man)-24

Man is the family name for all ideas, — the sons and daughters of God. All that God imparts moves in accord with Him, reflecting goodness and power.

3. 31 : 4-11

Jesus acknowledged no ties of the flesh. He said: "Call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven." Again he asked: "Who is my mother, and who are my brethren," implying that it is they who do the will of his Father. We have no record of his calling any man by the name of father. He recognized Spirit, God, as the only creator, and therefore as the Father of all.

4. 26 : 10-14

The Christ was the Spirit which Jesus implied in his own statements: "I am the way, the truth, and the life;" "I and my Father are one." This Christ, or divinity of the man Jesus, was his divine nature, the godliness which animated him. 

5. 525 : 7-16

The following are some of the equivalents of the term man in different languages. In the Saxon, mankind, a woman, any one; in the Welsh, that which rises up, — the primary sense being image, form; in the Hebrew, image, similitude; in the Icelandic, mind. The following translation is from the Icelandic: —

And God said, Let us make man after our mind and our likeness; and God shaped man after His mind; after God's mind shaped He Him; and He shaped them male and female.

6. 524 : 17-27 (to ,)

With a single command, Mind had made man, both male and female. How then could a material organization become the basis of man? How could the non-intelligent become the medium of Mind, and error be the enunciator of Truth? Matter is not the reflection of Spirit, yet God is reflected in all His creation. Is this addition to His creation real or unreal? Is it the truth, or is it a lie concerning man and God?

It must be a lie,

7. 191 : 4-17

As mortals give up the delusion that there is more than one Mind, more than one God, man in God's likeness will appear, and this eternal man will include in that likeness no material element.

As a material, theoretical life-basis is found to be a misapprehension of existence, the spiritual and divine Principle of man dawns upon human thought, and leads it to "where the young child was," — even to the birth of a new-old idea, to the spiritual sense of being and of what Life includes. Thus the whole earth will be transformed by Truth on its pinions of light, chasing away the darkness of error.

The human thought must free itself from self-imposed materiality and bondage.

8. 399 : 3-10, 23-28 (to 2nd .)

You say that certain material combinations produce disease; but if the material body causes disease, can matter cure what matter has caused? Mortal mind prescribes the drug, and administers it. Mortal mind plans the exercise, and puts the body through certain motions. No gastric gas accumulates, not a secretion nor combination can operate, apart from the action of mortal thought, alias mortal mind.

Scientifically speaking, there is no mortal mind out of which to make material beliefs, springing from illusion. This misnamed mind is not an entity. It is only a false sense of matter, since matter is not sensible. The one Mind, God, contains no mortal opinions. All that is real is included in this immortal Mind.

9. 205 : 22-27

When we realize that there is one Mind, the divine law of loving our neighbor as ourselves is unfolded; whereas a belief in many ruling minds hinders man's normal drift towards the one Mind, one God, and leads human thought into opposite channels where selfishness reigns.

10. 112 : 16-21 (to Christ-idea)

From the infinite One in Christian Science comes one Principle and its infinite idea, and with this infinitude come spiritual rules, laws, and their demonstration, which, like the great Giver, are "the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever;" for thus are the divine Principle of healing and the Christ-idea …

11. 226 : 25-29

The lame, the deaf, the dumb, the blind, the sick, the sensual, the sinner, I wished to save from the slavery of their own beliefs and from the educational systems of the Pharaohs, who to-day, as of yore, hold the children of Israel in bondage.

12. 228 : 11-19

The enslavement of man is not legitimate. It will cease when man enters into his heritage of freedom, his 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 own bodies through the understanding of divine Science. Dropping their present beliefs, they will recognize harmony as the spiritual reality and discord as the material unreality.

13. 227 : 14-26

Discerning the rights of man, we cannot fail to foresee the doom of all oppression. Slavery is not the legitimate state of man. God made man free. Paul said, "I was free born." All men should be free. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." Love and Truth make free, but evil and error lead into captivity.

Christian Science raises the standard of liberty and cries: "Follow me! Escape from the bondage of sickness, sin, and death!" Jesus marked out the way. Citizens of the world, accept the "glorious liberty of the children of God," and be free! This is your divine right.