Jesus the Christ revealed spiritual healing as an essential part of the practice of Christianity and as a very important proof of man's right to freedom; for sin, sickness, and all other evils that he destroyed, are forms of bondage. He did not do another's work, but he led the way and placed upon his followers the responsibility of realizing their rights, and their ability to vindicate them through spiritual power. Christian Science teaches its adherents to accept this responsibility, which involves the overcoming of disease as well as sin through an understanding of God. Popular theology would monopolize revelation, and conventional theories about materialistic curatives assume to monopolize healing, so the two are often considered entirely separate. Christian Science reaffirms the consistent doctrine of the Bible that if we earnestly seek God we shall find Him, and that He is convincingly revealed to us through spiritual healing of sin and disease.
The realization of spiritual healing is something much deeper than the recognition of a change in physical condition. Jesus indicated this plainly in his rebuke of those who looked for only materialistic signs. Proof of the ease with which a superficial estimate perverts the significance of spiritual healing is found in the accusation of the Pharisees that Jesus used supposititious evil power to destroy disease and sin. Similarly, human belief sometimes declares that Christian Science heals through hypnotism, suggestion, will power, magnetism, spiritualism, and so forth, although this Science teaches that these are forms of evil and cannot possibly produce good results. In all ages such critics have wholly failed to grasp spiritual healing, but have put forth some theory of evil under whatever name they may choose to give it.
Throughout the Bible the repeated declarations of God's willingness and power to heal, their marvelous fulfillment recounted therein, the apparent relationship of spiritual healing to Christian ministry, the great present need of humanity for such aid— all make it seem inexplicable that avowed Christians generally fail to avail themselves of the blessings of such healing. In relying upon materialistic curatives, professed Christians not only do not heed Christ's revelation of the infinite power of Spirit to heal, but take the opposite course of relying upon matter and the human mind to cure disease. Their practice of Christianity does not heal sin as the Master did, but uses blind belief, human will, profession, and form to overcome some evils; and admitting the weakness of their efforts, they preach that death will solve such problems as heredity, environment, and the apparent power of materiality and evil. The fact that Christians do not practice spiritual healing is proof that they do not understand Christ's revelation; and their theology admits as much. They affirm that the Savior's works of healing were of a special dispensation for that period only and cannot be understood or repeated to-day. Such assertions squarely conflict with the assurances of Jesus that his teachings are unchanging truth, and that the works he did and commended to others actually free mankind from all forms of evil.
