Most of us can probably recall occasions—on the world scene or in our community—in which an individual's firmness in standing for what was right helped him or her to surmount adamant opposition.
Being firm in one's stand for the spiritual reality of God and man is important in Christian Science treatment, too. The Bible contains many illustrations of how evil's apparent dominance, or threat to dominate, dissolves when confronted by unyielding spiritual strength.
The book of James says, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." James 4:7. The reason the devil, or evil, does flee is that evil has no actual substance. The essence of evil is a lie—a lie about God and how He has made man; a lie about what true power, life, and substance are. The lie "flees" when confronted by the recognition that God alone is powerful; that He is the only Life and substance of man, because man is made in His image and reflects Him. From this spiritual perspective we get a more accurate view of evil as an illusion—as something which has no place in God and which is therefore actually a misconception of God and His creation.
