The teaching that death is the door through which mortals may enter the kingdom of heaven, the realm of God, has been a stumbling block in the path of spiritual understanding for centuries. The beloved Master, Christ Jesus, says in speaking of this kingdom (Luke 17:21), "Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." This emphatic declaration indicates a spiritual state of being present here and now. However, we are admonished by Christ Jesus (John 3:3), "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
To millions of sincere seekers, the question following such a statement must be, "How can I be born again?" The answer is found in the Science of Christianity, revealed to this age by Mary Baker Eddy. Through the study of this revelation of Truth, the kingdom of God no longer appears to thought as a distant paradise attainable only through death. It is seen as a way of life attained in our present experience.
The very words "born again" indicate life, not death. What we actually need to do is to establish our true identity in order to be conscious of the kingdom of God. Surely no one could conceive of the kingdom of God as being in a material body. When we seek goodness, health, and understanding in mortality, we wander in the wilderness of mortal mind. There are no spiritual truths to be found in the atmosphere of mortality. The Scriptural authority supporting this conclusion is definite. Hear the words of Paul (Rom. 12:2): "Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind." The thinking which has conformed to the concept of material living must be enlightened. The action of pure thought must be revived within us. Pure consciousness reveals the life divine.
