The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1900-07-27

10 relax their rightly, and the spinal
column began TO adjust itself, and the
cords OF the neck began 10 be more sup
ple. and the eyes that could see only
the ground before. now looked into the
face of Christ with gratitude and up
toward Heaven in transport. Straight
After is weary and exhausting years,
straight! The poise, the gracefulness,
the beauty of healthy womanhood re-
instated. The IS years case was a
man who lay on a mattress near the
mineral baths at Jerusalem. There
were five apartments where lame peo-
pie were brought, so that they could get
the advantage of these mineral baths
The stone basin Of the bath is stin
visible. although the waters have dis
appeared. probably through some con
vulsion of nature. The bath, 100 feet
long, 40 feet wide and eight feet deep.
All. poor man. IL you had been lame ano
helpless IS years, the mineral bath can
not restore you. Why, 3s years is more.
than the average of human life. Moth
ing but the grave will cure you. But
Christ the Surgeon walks along these
baths and l have no doubt passes by
some patients who have been only six
months disordered, or a year or FIVE
wears and comes TO the mattress OF the
man who had been nearly four decades
helpless. and TO this IS years invalid
said: "wilt thou be made whole?"
The question asked not because the
surgeon did not understand the pro-
traetsdness, the 6esperateness, Of the
case. but TO evoke the mans pathetic
narrative. swift thou be made whole?''
-wous you like TO get well?" "Oh.
yes" says the man. That is what
came 10 these mineral baths for.
have tried everything. All the sur
geous have failed, and all the pre-
seriptions have proved valueless, and
| got worse and worse, and / can
neither move hand nor foot nor head.
oh. IL could only Be free from this
pain Of IS yearsia Christ and surgeon
could not stand that. Bending over
the man on the mattress. and in a
voice tender with all sympathy, but
strong with all omnipotence, he says:
"Rise!" And the invalid instantly
scrambles 20 his. knees and then puts
out his right foot. then his left foot,
and then stood upright as though he
had never been Frustrated. While he
stands locking at the doctor. with a
iov too much 10 hold, the doctor sayS;
shoulder this mattress. for you are
not only well enough 10 walk. but well
enough 10 work. and start ont from
these mineral baths. Take up thy bed
and walk" Oh, what a surgeon for
chronic cases then and for ehronic
cases nowl
This Is not applicable 50 much TO
those who are only a little hurt Of sin
and only for a short time, but 10 those
Frustrated OF sin - years, IS years.
IS years. Here is a surgeon able 10
give immortal health. ~Oh." you say,
Il am so completely overthrow and
trampled down of sin that / cannot
rise" Are you fatter down than this
patient at the mineral baths2 No.
Then rise. In the name Of JeFus-ft
Nazareth, the surgeos-who offers 4
His right hand OF help, / bid thee -.
Not cases of acute sin, but of chrome
sin-those who have noe prayed for
IS years. those who have not been 10
church for IS years, those who have
been gamblers. or libertines. or thieves
or outlaws. or blasphemers. or infidels,
or atheists, and all these together, for
IS years. A Christ for exigencies! a
Christ for a dead liftl A surgeon who
never loses a case!
In speaking of Christ as a surgeon
1 must consider him as an oculist OF
eve doctor. and an aurist or ear doc
tor. Was there ever such another ocu-
list? That he was particularly sorry
for the blind folks take from the fact
that the most of His works were with
the diseased optic nerves. / have not
time TO count up the number Of blind
people mentioned who got His cure.
Two blind men in one house; also one
who was born blind; so that it'was
not removal of a visual obstruction,
but the creation of the cornea and
ciliary muscle and crystalline lens and
retina and optic nerve and tear gland,
also the blind man of Bethsaida, cured
by the saliva which the Surgeon took
from the tip Of His own tongue and
put upon the eyelids; also two blind
men who sat by the wayside
In our civilized lands we have blind
ness enough, the ratio fearfully in
creasing, according TO the statement
of European and American oculists,
because of the reading of morning and
evening newspapers on the jolting cars
by the muletudes who live out Of the
city and come in TO business. But in
the lands where the Divine surgeon
operated the cases of blindness were
multiplied beyond everything by the
particles of sand floating in the dir.
and the night dews falling on the eye
lids of those who slept on the top OF
their houses, and in some of these lands
il is estimated that 20 out of 100 peo-
pie are totally blind. Amid all that
crowd of visionless people, what work
for an oculistl And l do not believe
that more than one out of a hundred
of that surgeons cures were reported.
That is the oculist we all need. Till
he touches our eyes we are blind.
Yea, we were born blind. BY nature
we see things wrong if we see them
at all. Our best eternal interests are
put before us, and we cannot see
them. The glories of a loving and