The Prisoner in the Third Cell by Gene Edwards

Author:Gene Edwards
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: RELIGION / Christian Life / General, FICTION / Religious
ISBN: 9781414328157
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Published: 2010-08-09T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

The three disciples of John squatted down on the slimy floor of the dungeon that had become John’s home.

“Teacher, we have seen your cousin.”

“Did you ask my question?”

“We did.”

“And his answer?”

“Teacher, the answer is very strange. We do not understand it.”

John sighed. It was as though he knew this would be Nadab’s response.

“His reply?”

“Teacher, he said to tell you that the blind and the dumb and the crippled receive sight and hearing and healing. Then he said to tell you that the good news is proclaimed, and received with joy.”

John turned those words over in his mind very slowly. After several minutes, his brow wrinkled. The prisoner leaned forward and asked, “Is that all?”

“No, teacher, he said one other thing, and then he dismissed the crowd and bade us farewell. What he said was, ‘Tell John, “And blessed is he who is not offended with me.”’”

There was a long silence as three men studied the face of John, hoping to glimpse his reaction to these words. But, as always, there was none.

Finally John queried: “Where was my cousin?”

“In a village in Galilee, called Nain,” responded Nadab. “There were sick people everywhere; streets, lanes, and alleys were all filled with people wanting to be healed. The place was overrun with suffering souls.”

“Were they being healed?”

“Yes, teacher, many were being healed.”

With those words, John’s interest quickened, his frame straightened. “Did you say, many?” responded John.

“Yes, teacher, many.”

“Many?” asked John again.

Nadab was puzzled. “Yes, teacher,” he answered again, “Many were being healed.”

“Many,” repeated John quietly as to himself. Then he leaned forward again. “Many, Nadab? Many, but not all?”

For a brief instant Nadab was at a loss as to what John was saying. Then his own eyes lit up, revealing the shock of what John was observing. “Yes, teacher, you are right. There were many who were being healed, but not all.”

“. . . not . . . all.”

John stared vacantly into space. Had he at last found the answer to the questions which had troubled him so deeply about Jesus? Or had he simply added more questions to his dilemma?

At that very moment, there was someone else who was struggling with this same dilemma.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.