Jesus said, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." The real import of these words has surely been overlooked by professed Christians, for few seem to take them seriously; and yet probably no words in all the Bible have more vital significance for the human race, for is not this a question of life or death, heaven or hell?
The reason for this lack of apprehension and appreciation may perhaps be found in the old theological belief that because a man believes, or says he believes, in Jesus Christ, he is saved, or is on the side of those who have experienced this new birth. Did not Jesus say, "He that believeth on me hath everlasting life"? Is not that enough? they would say. People who are content to leave the matter here, must find sooner or later that mere belief is insufficient, to get them into the kingdom of heaven, for, as the apostle James says, "faith without works is dead." It would be foolish for one to assert his belief in mathematics while unable to work out a single mathematical problem. Likewise, if one believes in Christ Jesus, the works he did would necessarily follow; hence Jesus' words, "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also."
In Christian Science the meaning of the new birth is made clear, and it might be well to consider it briefly from this standpoint. Writing on this subject Henry Drummond used an illustration along these lines: In a certain museum may be seen two small boxes of what appears to be sand. On examination under a microscope, the sand from one box is found to consist of minute crystals of silica (a natural glass), six-sided prisms, capped at either end with little pyramids. This comes from a mountain in Arran. The other box contains, he says, "a vast collection of microscopic urns, goblets, and vases, each richly ornamented with small sculptured disks or perforations which are disposed over the pure white surface in regular belts and rows. Each tiny urn is chiseled into the most faultless proportions, and the whole presents a vision of magic beauty."
