IN Ecclesiastes we read, "That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past." This evidently implies that nothing which is not good can remain permanently in consciousness. If, therefore, we are holding wrong thoughts as realities, either past or present, we are to that extent hindering the recognition of the harmonious condition hinted at in the above quotation. There are many lessons to be learned from every passage of Scripture, when its spiritual significance is seen, and an experience of the writer in this connection may be helpful, especially when the verse is correlated with the admonition to the church in Philadelphia as recorded by John in Revelation: "Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown."
First of all, we notice that the message concerned the church whose name reminds us of "brotherly love;" and in this connection we cannot help remembering Jesus' repeated admonitions to his disciples, and prayers for unity and love among his followers. In her Message for 1900, Mrs. Eddy calls attention to the fact that the revelator has a rebuke for each of the seven churches in Asia except this church in Philadelphia (see p. 14). Oneness in Christ implies the crown of brotherly love, which we are to guard against the would-be thief.
We next notice that we already possess this priceless gift,—it is not something for which we must strive, it belongs to each one of us as part of our birthright as sons of God; and indeed to the extent that we demonstrate this sonship are we in the conscious possession of our "crown." It seems, however, that we are apt to lose this consciousness, since the one evil is ever lying in wait to rob us of the priceless treasures of Truth, and thus to cheat us of the blessing that is rightfully ours.
