The saying of Jesus, recorded in the twelfth chapter of John's Gospel, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me," is often interpreted to mean, If the Christ, or spiritual idea, is lifted up in human consciousness, it will draw all men unto it. Although the context, especially the thirty-third verse, indicates that Jesus was referring at that time to what he knew would soon occur, namely, his crucifixion, for the verse reads, "This he said, signifying what death he should die," it is quite likely that he was looking beyond his trial and execution to his victory over death, a victory which he had already foreseen and predicted. He had previously said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." It is reasonable to suppose, therefore, that even at that moment, facing, as he was, the dreadful human ordeal through which he must soon pass, he was seeing the ascendancy of his true spiritual selfhood, which would result, not only in his resurrection, but also in his ascension. And on page 93 of "Retrospection and Introspection" Mrs. Eddy applies this passage in its more spiritual sense when writing of the ministry of the Master.
Through his understanding of the continuity of existence and the eternal, indestructible nature of God, who is the only Life of man, Jesus overcame the belief that he had died. Thus, there occurred the resurrection of his physical body, in spite of the fact that the Roman centurion had pronounced him dead and Joseph of Arimathaea had placed his body in a tomb. Writing of this transcendent proof of the Christ-power, Mrs. Eddy says in Science and Health (p. 45), "Jesus vanquished every material obstacle, overcame every law of matter, and stepped forth from his gloomy resting-place, crowned with the glory of a sublime success, an everlasting victory."
After forty days, during which Jesus gave abundant proof of his resurrection, not only to his disciples but to "above five hundred brethren," he reached the point in his demonstration where he realized fully that he did not live in a matter body, and then occurred his ascension. Of this our Leader has written on page 46 of Science and Health, "In his final demonstration, called the ascension, which closed the earthly record of Jesus, he rose above the physical knowledge of his disciples, and the material senses saw him no more." But when Christ Jesus reached the point where his individuality was no longer materially tangible, he did not cease to exist. On the contrary, he entered into a fuller realization of his spiritual identity and of the eternal oneness of his real individuality with God, Spirit, Mind. In that moment, the human Jesus was forever replaced by the divine Christ. Then, indeed, was his true spiritual selfhood lifted "up from the earth;" and, beginning with the early Christians, it has continued to "draw all men unto" it, to the extent that they have been ready to "bow before Christ, Truth, to receive more of his reappearing" (Science and Health, p. 35).
