Editorial April 2, 2018 ISSUE

‘I just don’t know how to heal’—and a lesson from Peter

Scott Preller

You can’t really read the Gospels without encountering healing as a primary theme. It’s abundantly clear that Jesus expected his followers then and now to be active healers. And he didn’t speak of it as something beyond what they could do, but rather as a natural outcome of believing what he taught. That’s what makes the Gospels such good news.

Christian Science lifts the feeling that healing is a burdensome or even impossible demand of Christianity. I’ve never met a Christian Scientist who couldn’t recall some experience of significant healing in their life. These healing experiences aren’t shared as some sort of dramatic, otherworldly event, but as the practical outcome of understanding more deeply the fact of God’s supremacy always in operation. But here’s the interesting thing: I’ve also never met a Christian Scientist who couldn’t recall a time when they felt that, despite their best efforts and prayers, they just weren’t seeing the results they’d hoped for. No matter how significant the healings they may have seen or experienced in the past, the lack of present progress brought on a discouragement and fear that made them feel, “I just don’t know how to heal.”

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Bible Lens—April 2–8, 2018