"YE cannot serve God and mammon" —a sentence which has come ringing down through the ages —is a whole sermon in itself on the economic conditions of the Christian countries of to-day; and it was spoken by Jesus nearly two thousand years ago. Jesus needed no study of the many philosophies that delve into the hidden workings of the so-called human mind, that magnify and exalt the motives and reactions of mortals, to ascertain the causes of want and woe. Neither did he find it necessary to enter into the economic conditions of the period, to offer solution of the unrest of the time, or to answer the questions of the doctors of the law.
In clear, succinct statements he preached simple, forceful sermons which, if followed by all Christian peoples, would revolutionize the world: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's." And the warning, "No man can serve two masters"!
"We cannot serve both God and mammon at the same time; but is not this what frail mortals are trying to do?" writes Mrs. Eddy in the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 346). And like a voice crying in the wilderness of spiritual barrenness, comes the message of Christian Science pointing the way, that we may follow Jesus' clear-seeing, intensely wise philosophy.
