Spiritual guidance
566:1 As the children of Israel were guided triumphantly
through the Red Sea, the dark ebbing and flowing tides
566:3 of human fear, - as they were led through the
wilderness, walking wearily through the great
desert of human hopes, and anticipating the promised
566:6 joy, - so shall the spiritual idea guide all right desires
in their passage from sense to Soul, from a material sense
of existence to the spiritual, up to the glory prepared for
566:9 them who love God. Stately Science pauses not, but
moves before them, a pillar of cloud by day and of fire
by night, leading to divine heights.
566:12 If we remember the beautiful description which Sir
Walter Scott puts into the mouth of Rebecca the Jewess
in the story of Ivanhoe, -
566:15 When Israel, of the Lord beloved,
Out of the land of bondage came,
Her fathers' God before her moved,
566:18 An awful guide, in smoke and flame, -
we may also offer the prayer which concludes the same
hymn, -
566:21 And oh, when stoops on Judah's path
In shade and storm the frequent night,
Be Thou, longsuffering, slow to wrath,
566:24 A burning and a shining light!
/Revelation/ xii. 7, 8. And there was war in heaven:
Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the
566:27 dragon fought, and his angels, and prevailed not; neither
was their place found any more in heaven.
Angelic offices
The Old Testament assigns to the angels, God's divine
566:30 messages, different offices. Michael's charac-
teristic is spiritual strength. He leads the
hosts of heaven against the power of sin, Satan, and
567:1 fights the holy wars. Gabriel has the more quiet task
of imparting a sense of the ever-presence of ministering
567:3 Love. These angels deliver us from the depths. Truth
and Love come nearer in the hour of woe, when strong
faith or spiritual strength wrestles and prevails through
567:6 the understanding of God. The Gabriel of His presence
has no contests. To infinite, ever-present Love, all is
Love, and there is no error, no sin, sickness, nor death.
567:9 Against Love, the dragon warreth not long, for he is
killed by the divine Principle. Truth and Love prevail
against the dragon because the dragon cannot war with
567:12 them. Thus endeth the conflict between the flesh and
Spirit.
/Revelation/ xii. 9. And the great dragon was cast out,
567:15 that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiv-
eth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his
angels were cast out with him.
Dragon cast down to earth
567:18 That false claim - that ancient belief, that old serpent
whose name is devil (evil), claiming that there is intelli-
gence in matter either to benefit or to injure
567:21 men - is pure delusion, the red dragon; and
it is cast out by Christ, Truth, the spiritual
idea, and so proved to be powerless. The words "cast
567:24 unto the earth" show the dragon to be nothingness, dust
to dust; and therefore, in his pretence of being a talker,
he must be a lie from the beginning. His angels, or mes-
567:27 sages, are cast out with their author. The beast and the
false prophets are lust and hypocrisy. These wolves in
sheep's clothing are detected and killed by innocence, the
567:30 Lamb of Love.