“NDEs”? No, it’s not an acronym for some secret military class of weapon!

It stands for “Near Death Experiences.” And there appears to be an abundance of books and articles written by folks who tell of their firsthand accounts of such phenomena.

Clearly, many people are interested in it.

However, we should be careful not to look to these sources as proof of eternal life or infer that they are similar to or validate the teachings of Christian Science.

Why?

Because they are frequently imbued with spiritualism, mysticism, occultism, and even some of the arguments of humanism/atheism–arguments such as all that is required is for us to love ourselves and each other, laugh a lot, and go about our lives with a human sense of fearlessness.

And that’s a problem.

Why?

Because these positions and philosophies have nothing in common with the teachings of Mary Baker Eddy—their premises and foundations being entirely different.

Yet as jeopardous as these mistaken ideas are to spiritual growth and serving God, there is still another, more subtle danger lurking and waiting to ensnare us here.

What might that be?

A fascination with death itself!

And that, my friends, is nothing less than the snare of the carnal mind seeking to impress upon our thought a false sense of a supposed “spiritual” necessity and even desirability for death as a means to open a portal to a greater understanding of spiritual life—when in fact, nothing could be further from the truth!

The result of falling into this pitfall is that we are unwittingly working against our own demonstration of the ever-presence of Life—of God—by focusing on death, which the Bible describes as the “last enemy that shall be destroyed” (First Corinthians: 15).

So, what is the proof of the omnipresence of Life? What is the validation of the teachings of Christian Science?

Well, for me it comes down to this metric: The degree to which we are accomplishing the commands of Jesus to all of his followers to “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils” (Matt. 10:8).

Commands that Mary Baker Eddy emphasized throughout her writings.

Science and Health states (p. 426):

The relinquishment of all faith in death and also of the fear of its sting would raise the standard of health and morals far beyond its present elevation, and would enable us to hold the banner of Christianity aloft with unflinching faith in God, in Life eternal.

Isn’t that where we should be focusing our thought and healing activities?