The Revealing Word, by Charles Fillmore, [1959], at sacred-texts.com
The Revealing Word, by Charles Fillmore, [1959], at sacred-texts.com
dainties, king's--That which pertains to sensual gratification.
dark sayings--Refers to the darkened consciousness that cannot yet see the true light. Jesus knew that the apostles would soon reach the point where they would be able to go direct to the Father for light and guidance. Then He would not have to speak to them in "dark sayings" that they could not understand, but could speak to them "plainly of the Father" (John 16:25).
darkness--The ignorance of the sense man; the absence of Truth (light) in consciousness. Darkness represents undeveloped capacity. It is caused by lack of love. "He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother, is in the darkness" (I John 2:9).
dawn--Spiritual perception as a dawning light in consciousness, increasing as one turns steadily toward Truth.
day--Represents the state of mind in which intelligence dominates. The idea back of day is light, or the dispensation of intelligence. In the Scriptures day and night are symbols for degrees of unfoldment, day being understanding; night, ignorance. (see night)
day, last--All shall attain who believe or have faith in the spiritual source of life. Whoever enters into the Mind of Spirit will have poured out to him its life essence and be wholly raised up from material conditions when arriving at the "last day"--the last degree of understanding.
day of judgment--Any day in which we get the result in body and affairs of some thought or word that we have expressed.
day of rest--The true day of rest is the consciousness of universal peace that constitutes the kingdom of
heaven. This peace is eternal, and when man becomes conscious of it his "day of rest" has begun to dawn. This rest comes from the understanding that now in Christ all things are complete.
days, three--The three days that Jesus was in the tomb represent the three steps in overcoming error. First, nonresistance and humility; second, the taking on of divine activity, or accepting the will of God; third, the assimilation and fulfillment of divine will.
daydreamer--One having ideas brilliant beyond description, but which are not clothed in the habiliments of action. He perceives an idea, but does not give it form by infusing into it the substance of living faith. He falls short by failing to realize that there are two sides to every proposition, the image and the expression.
death--Physical dissolution of the body; the outer symbol of mental negation or spiritual inertia. As commonly interpreted, death is the absence of life in the body. Death is caused by man's failure to comply fully with God's law. It is the result of sin and has no uplifting power. A falling short of the law of life is sin. Sin causes discord in mind, which produces a separation between spirit and body. Through believing in error and dissipating the life substance, the mind loses hold of its consciousness of life and enters into negation, and dissolution takes place. The result is death of the body temple. "The wages of sin is death; but the free gift of God is eternal life" (Rom. 6:23).
If, through the power of our thought and word, we affirm the opposite of life and talk about the absence of life, we rob the body cells of their natural element. This treatment will eventually bring death to the organism. Let us not say, "I am tired"; "I am weak"; "I am sick." Rather, let us say, "I am strong"; "I am well"; "I am alive with the life of God now and forevermore."
death, an enemy of man--Death is not a friend but
an enemy and must be overcome. Death does not change man and bring him into the resurrection and eternal life. Death has no place in the Absolute.
In the world today there is an active effort to exalt death and to delude men into believing that death is the way to eternal life in heaven. Such a thought is opposed to the teachings of Jesus, because Jesus came to deliver the human race from death and to fulfill in man God's perfect will: abundant life. Jesus made no mention of resurrection after death as having any part in the new birth. The new birth is a change that comes here and now. It has to do with the present man, that he may become conscious of Christ within himself. Those who are guided by the Spirit of truth understand the life teaching and are not led astray by any philosophy that makes death and the grave necessary factors in spiritual growth.
death, a sleep--Death is but a prolonged sleep, the result of thought inharmony so great that the body cannot stand the strain and collapses. Then, instead of being in a body when he awakes, man finds that he is in the realm of thought without a vehicle adequate to his full expression, and he is forced by divine law again to build an organism.
death, first and second--The first death is the death of the light and life of Spirit in man's consciousness. The second death is a cessation of vital force and action in the body. It occurs when the mind completely loses control of the body. The functional activities cease, and the physical organism dissolves.
death, how to overcome--The Christ man goes through the various centers of the body and rebuilds them with his word. The abiding consciousness of life fills every cell of the body with its quickening energy, and the body becomes immortal.
debt--A contradiction of the universal equilibrium. There is no such thing as lack of equilibrium in all the
universe; therefore, in Spirit and in Truth there is no debt.
Debts are produced by thoughts of lack, impatient desire, and covetousness. A thought of debt will produce debt. As long as we believe in debt, we shall go into debt and accumulate the burdens that follow this thought. When such thoughts are erased from consciousness, our debts are overcome and paid in full.
debt, how to overcome--Thoughts of abundance will more quickly and surely bring what is ours to us than any thoughts we can hold about debtors discharging their obligations to us. We are to see abundance everywhere and to affirm it, not only for ourselves but for everyone else. We shall fill our mind with thoughts of divine love, justice, peace, and forgiveness. This will pay our debts of love, which will bring to us abundance to meet every obligation.
decree--To command; to ordain. To decree with assurance is to establish and to fix an ideal in substance. The force behind the decree is invisible, like a promise to be fulfilled at a future time; but it binds with its invisible chains the one who makes it. We have only a slight conception of the strength of the intangible. We compare and measure strength by some strong element in nature. We say that something is as "strong as steel." But a little thought will convince us that mental affirmations are far stronger than the strongest visible thing in the world. The reason for this is that visible things lack livingness. They are not linked with energy and intelligence as are words. Words charged with power and intelligence increase with use, while material things decrease.
Deity, the--The Supreme Being; God.
delusion--False perception. Delusion occurs only in that realm which is not established by the divine Logos, God's creative Word.
demon--This word is used in Matt. 8:28-34, when
the demons ask to be sent into the swine. The demons of the parable represent error states of mind that have been quickened by Truth and are repentant. When one knows the work of Jesus in regenerating or reconstructing the mind and body and that this work is typical of what all have to do, one sees that negative thoughts have to be dealt with. One also understands that the demons or devils are error states of mind that have to be lifted up by the quickening power of Spirit. (see Christianity and Devil)
demonstrate--"To prove by reasoning, as by deduction; to establish as true" (Webster). To demonstrate Truth is to effect a change of consciousness. This includes the elimination of error and the establishment of Truth.
demonstration--The proving of a Truth principle in one's body or affairs. The manifestation of an ideal when its accomplishment has been brought about by one's conformity in thought, word, and act to the creative Principle of God.
It is a metaphysical law that there are three steps in every demonstration: the recognition of Truth as it is in Principle; holding an idea; and acknowledging fulfillment. "Whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matt. 21:22).
demonstration, complete--God expressed in all fullness; the putting on of Christhood, which Jesus accomplished.
demonstration, spiritual--A spiritual realization followed by the manifestation in the outer of the Truth that has been realized within.
demonstration, the great--That which crowns all others and includes all others--the demonstration of eternal life; the truth that life is omnipresent and eternal and that it is ours just to the measure that we appropriate it.
demonstrator--One who understands and conforms to any point of divine law. He may demonstrate much or
little; he may deal with his whole consciousness or merely with his outer mentality. (see overcomer)
denial--The mental process of erasing from consciousness the false beliefs of the sense mind. Denial clears away belief in evil as reality and thus makes room for the establishing of Truth.
Carnal consciousness is made up of a multitude of false individual and race beliefs. Through denial we get rid of these shadows of reality. We cleanse the temple of the mind of these thieves and robbers of our good. In so doing, we make way for the planting of the seeds of Truth that will bring to us an ever-increasing supply of good. (see affirmation)
denials, as related to affirmations--A denial is a relinquishment, and it should not be made with too much vehemence. Let us make our denials as though we were gently sweeping away cobwebs, and our affirmations in a strong, bold, positive attitude of mind. When we poise ourselves in Divine Mind our affirmations and denials will be made in right relation. We will know just when to let go of a thought and when to lay hold of another.
deny himself--When a man denies himself he denies personality; he denies that the world of appearance is real. "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself . . . and follow me" (Mark 8:34).
desert place--A desert place in the consciousness of man is a seeming lack of substance and life. In Truth desert places do not really exist. From the viewpoint of Spirit there is no lack. Where God is, there are His inexhaustible resources; God is everywhere present.
desire--An expression of the inmost being of man; the onward impulse of an ever-evolving man. It springs from deep within Being and it has enduring power. Deep desire is essential to spiritual growth. It is desire--earnest, intense desire--that draws the whole being up out of
mortality and its transient joys into the power to appreciate and to receive real spiritual blessings.
desire, repressed--Desire that is forced out of consciousness into the subconscious mind without transmutation according to spiritual law.
desire to excel--The inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which ever urges us to forsake earthly things and to desire that which is of heaven. Desire to excel should be encouraged and cultivated in the right direction. It is in all men.
destiny--The goal toward which man's own thoughts are leading him. In the beginning he was destined to bring forth God's perfect pattern and he must eventually reach this supreme goal. Man's destiny is to go from glory to glory.
development--Increase in conception and expression of the qualities that belong to Divine Mind. The development or correction of all present ideas underlying one's manifestation, and the training of them to conform to the divine idea of man.
Devil--The mass of thoughts that has been built up in race consciousness through many generations of earthly experiences and crystallized into what may be termed human personality, or carnal mind, which opposes and rejects God.
The "devil" is a state of consciousness adverse to the divine good. Other names for this state of consciousness are the Adversary, carnal mind, the accuser, and the old man. There is no personal devil. God is the one omnipresent Principle of the universe, and there is no room for any principle of evil, personified or otherwise.
Devil, how to overcome the--The Devil is overcome by denying his existence and by affirming universal Christ love for God and all men. The devils that we encounter are fear, anger, jealousy, and other similar negative traits,
and they are in ourselves. Christ gives us the power to cast out these devils, thereby cleansing our consciousness.
digestion, spiritual--Absorbing Truth into the consciousness through meditation.
discern--"To lay hold of with the understanding, especially that which is hidden or obscure; to divine" (Webster). To apprehend the Truth of Being; to look through appearances and to behold the reality of omnipresence.
discerning the Lord's body--(see I Cor. 11:29) To discern the Lord's body is to recognize that it is substance and life, and it is formed within man, and that it is, in the larger sense, made up of members in whom the Christ body has been individually formed.
discernment, spiritual--That inner spiritual faculty by which man may receive the revelations of God-Mind. The faculty by which we inwardly know that which is spiritual. It indicates the ready insight into divine law that was the glory of the Master.
disciple--"One who receives instruction from another" (Webster). (see apostles)
disciple, calling of--To call a disciple (or apostle) is mentally to recognize that disciple; it is to identify oneself with the intelligence working at a center: for example, judgment at the solar plexus. To make this identification, one must realize one's unity with God through Christ, Christ being the Son-of-God idea always existing in man's consciousness.
disciples in the upper room--The gathering of the disciples (or apostles) in the upper room symbolizes the concentration of the faculties at the center of spirituality in communion with the Father.
discrimination--The ability to distinguish qualities or values, enabling one intelligently to choose the desirable.
disease--An inharmonious condition in mind and body brought about by error thinking. Ignorance causes all disease.
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). Organic disease has its origin in mind as truly as any other manifestation. It has become subconscious and needs the power of the Christ Mind to reach and to dissolve the error thoughts that are causing the disease.
dispensation, new--The great outpouring of power, love, and spiritual life that is now taking place in all who acknowledge the I AM presence.
dispensation, old--The Mosaic dispensation.
divine--Godlike; godly; of the nature of God.
divine ideal--The Christ man; the divine idea of man.
divine law--The logical process by which Principle or God manifests.
Divine Mind--God-Mind; ever-present, all-knowing Mind; the Absolute, the unlimited. Omnipresent, all-wise, all-loving, all-powerful Spirit.
There is but one Mind, and that Mind cannot be separated or divided, because, like the principle of mathematics, it is indivisible. All that we can say of the one Mind is that it is absolute and that all its manifestations are in essence like itself.
Divine Mind, creative power of--The functioning of the principles of Being; Spirit in action. Mind is not a thing; Mind is. It is that which, through orderly processes, produces things. Divine Mind first conceives the idea, then images its fulfillment. Man, acting in co-operation with Divine Mind, places himself under this same creative law and thus brings his ideas into manifestation.
divine motherhood--The brooding, nourishing element of Divine Mind, in which spiritual ideas are brought to fruition.
divine order--Order is the first law of the universe. Indeed, there could be no universe unless its various parts were kept in perfect order. The facts of Spirit are of spiritual character and, when understood in their right
relation, they are orderly. Orderliness is law and is the test of true science.
divinity within us--The true spiritual man, the Christ that is the real of every man.
doctrine of church--A teaching peculiar to a church or to churches in general.
doctrine of Unity, value of the--Unity doctrine is of practical, everyday value to everyone who follows its instructions because it shows man that he is his own minister, lawyer, and doctor and that he has within himself the storehouse from which he can supply every need. It is the doctrine that Jesus proclaimed with original simplicity. It asks man to return again to the estate of simplicity in which he was as a little child, believing implicitly what the Father tells him from the inner recesses of his own being. It has been found to be a good doctrine because it has opened to man a new world, and he sees how, through it, shall be brought about the fulfillment of the promise: "And he [God] shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, anymore: the first things are passed away" (Rev. 21:4).
domination--"Exercise of power in ruling; often, arbitrary or insolent sway" (Webster). One person should never dominate another because it weakens the will of the one dominated and makes the will of the one who dominates hard and unyielding.
dominion--"Supreme authority, sovereignty" (Webster). As a perfect child of God, man is born to complete dominion over all creation. Dominion is an inner consciousness obtained only through mind discipline. This supreme authority comes as man realizes his oneness with the Father.
dominion, urge to exercise--The power and right of dominion and authority are innate within man, having been implanted there by Divine Mind at man's creation.
door--The door of our mind is the I AM. "I am the door of the sheep" (John 10:7). The "sheep" are our thoughts. There is but one life-giver, one Saviour, the Christ; and the only door through which the divine essence can come to us is through our own I AM.
door of the temple--The "door of the temple which is called Beautiful" (Acts 3:2) is the way that opens to spiritual illumination, to an understanding of how to lay hold of and to apply spiritual law.
double-mindedness--Contemplation of a world both good and evil; mental acceptance of a principle of evil as well as of good. This constitutes a denial of God as omnipresent good.
doubt--"Unsettled state of opinion concerning the reality of the truth of something" (Webster). Doubt is the Satan of every man. Doubt is the root of weakness, mental and physical. If men had faith in themselves, in the ability of Spirit within them, they would become giants, where they are but pygmies.
dove--Symbolizes peace of mind and confidence in divine law. The dove is nonresistant. In this state of consciousness we rest in Spirit.
drink of the cup--To drink of the cup from which Jesus drank is to rise above all sensuality, to gain mastery over every impulse of mind and body, and to devote one's whole life to Spirit.
drunkard--"One who habitually drinks strong liquors immoderately" (Webster). The first step in healing the drunkard in ourselves or another is to withdraw all condemnation and censure and to affirm the law of love. There is a very close connection in Being between love and life.
A man once testified that he healed himself of drunkenness by saying, whenever the desire for liquor came to him, "I do not love whisky; I love God."
duality--(see double-mindedness)
dust, shake off the--To deny all seeming materiality. "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, as ye go forth out of that house or that city, shake off the dust of your feet" (Matt. 10:14).
dying--The state of negation in man's consciousness wherein he is failing to retain possession of his body.
dying to self--Signifies man's willingness to die to the little personal self, so that he may be absorbed into Divine Mind. To lay down the mortal thought of life and to take up the spiritual idea of life opens the door to the realization that the I AM has creative power and can express the life manifestation in divine order.