Christ Jesus , the Way-shower, gave a twofold command to his disciples. He told them to preach the gospel and to heal the sick; and the work which he himself did as he went about among the multitudes showed that he considered these two commands as inseparably connected. With the giving out of the Word he expected and obtained the "signs following," and he looked to his disciples to do likewise.

To preach is to proclaim the gospel, and the gospel is the good news concerning the Christ and the kingdom of God. Today Christian Science revealing to its students the truth about the kingdom of God and is proclaiming the good news that man is the idea of Love, coexistent with God and including all right ideas. As students of Christian Science, we first of all tell this good news to ourselves. We begin by assuring ourselves that we live in Mind; that we can therefore be conscious only of the activity of divine goodness. We watch the quality of our thinking, and accept as real only those thoughts which truly express the divine nature. We assure ourselves of the spiritual facts of health and of the indestructibility of Mind and its ideas, and we learn to look for good everywhere. When we are awake to this good news, and realize that the kingdom of God is indeed within us, and that, as Mrs. Eddy says, "we can become conscious, here and now, of a cessation of death, sorrow, and pain" (Science and Health, p. 573), then are we ready to preach to others, to proclaim the truth our brother men, to know confidently that they too in their real and only being are dwelling in the kingdom of eternal harmony.

Preaching does not necessarily mean talking; and, indeed, our best work is often done silently. It is calm, confident knowing that helps ourselves and the world. It is trust in the all-presence of Spirit and its manifestations which is making multitudes of seekers receptive to the teachings of Christian Science. It is the acknowledgment of the perfection of spiritual creation that is helping to establish here on earth the divine concept of goodness.

The question arises as to how this conscious dwelling in divine Mind works itself out in human experience. The thought imbued with the spirit of Truth is awake to see that suggestions of evil as having place or power do not exist in the kingdom of God. So it is found that all that is fashioned is in Mind, and that all manifestations of this divine formation must be and are good. The reflected thoughts of Mind of necessity partake of the nature and quality of Mind and must be and are inseparable from Mind. The acknowledgment of the presence of the kingdom of Love and acceptance of the fact that here and now our real selfhood is dwelling in the presence of perfection, brings with it the consciousness of regeneration and continuous spiritual ascension. This good news, which Christian Science is revealing to us in so many ways, lifts our thought above the narrowness of mortal living into the glorious freedom which belongs to us as children of God.

Similarly, we are able to know that we manifest health, for to the Christian Scientist whose thought is dwelling in the Christ, sickness is a dream, a suggestion of the supposed absence of God; and so it holds no hidden terrors, and has no subtle workings. He knows, too, that all of God's ideas are likewise manifesting perfect health, and he watches his own thought carefully so that he may accept only that which is right and healthy for his brethren and himself.

He who ascribes all power to God has is thought lifted out of the obscurity of mortal thinking, and becomes aware that he possesses clear perception and clear understanding. Self-consciousness—that is, a belief of selfhood in matter, expressed as self-depreciation, self-importance, self-righteousness, and other beliefs of a false sense of self—is eradicated by the knowledge that there is "but one I, or Us, but one divine Principle, or Mind, governing all existence" (Science and Health, p. 588). When we are able to affirm that God does all that is done; that all ability, all wisdom and patience, all thought and action and purpose, are reflections of Mind, the only power, the only Ego, it is evident to us that as we preach the gospel we must at the same time be healing the sick. As we ourselves become more conscious of what we are telling of the good news which the teaching of Christian Science is bringing to the world, we are really fulfilling the two commands of Jesus.

Through her revelation of Christian Science, our Leader has made it possible for us to carry out these commands, for it is through her work that thousands today are proving that the truth underlying the statement, "He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions," is available here and now. Christian Science brings to the individual thought the consciousness of the all-presence of God and the fact that man is not material, but spiritual. It is the truth that is promised in the Bible, the truth that makes free, that gives dominion over all that is unlike good.

If we are to be thoroughly acquainted with this good news which we desire to understand for ourselves and to share with others, we must study the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, and we must strive to put into practice what we understand, even though we do not always see the full significance of what we read. Our Leader proved what she taught. Many today are proving true what she has written. It is our privilege to prove this good news to be good for ourselves and for our fellow men. "As ye go," Jesus said to his disciples, "preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils." That command was not for a limited group, nor for a limited period of time. It was a command to his disciples throughout all ages. If we proclaim the good news we have learned, and understand and know what we are proclaiming, we shall bless and heal ourselves and our fellow men. And in so doing we shall be obeying the command of the Master.