The author of Proverbs opens the sixteenth chapter with the familiar verse, "The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord." Turning to Young's Bible Concordance we find that the word translated "preparations" meant originally "arrangement, disposing"; while the word here given as "heart" is translated "mind" in eleven other places and "understanding" in twenty. To paraphrase the passage freely we might say: In proportion as one spiritualizes his thinking, in that proportion is he conscious of divine Love as a very near presence, answering his prayers and saving him from evil. In this passage, then, we find a clear statement of the theme of redemption which runs throughout the Scriptures. The implication is unmistakable: one must fulfill the condition, that is, purify his thinking, in order to reap the blessing, escape from difficulties and perplexities, and demonstrate the harmony of real being.
The prophet Ezekiel recognized the necessity of this redemptive process in order that human consciousness be purged of its illusions, and he cried out the demands of Principle as they had unfolded to him in these words (18:31): "Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit."
Christ Jesus, the Way-shower, throughout his ministry emphasized the necessity of correcting false material concepts and replacing them with spiritual ideas. Of the Jewish ruler Nicodemus, who yearned to understand his words and works, the Master made the unequivocal demand, "Ye must be born again" (John 3:7). Nicodemus' reply showed clearly that this statement was incomprehensible to him. With tender patience Jesus then explained his meaning more fully, concluding with the pertinent reminder, "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up."
