Evening journal., 1916-01-26

the pool" He was looking only to
poor human source for help. He
did not realize that bending over him
was the strong Son of God. who as
sisted in creating this universe, and
was soon to break the mastery OF
death and the grave. Your basis Of
hope is not what you can do, but
what God can do. IF you look within
you will get discouraged. If you look
around, you will get distracted. But
il you look up you will gain victory.
There is another thought implied in
his remark. He thought there was
no one who had an interest in him.
A young man came into a meeting
recently, and as he went out he said,
"I don't think I will go back there
again, for not a person came and
spoke to me and gave me a hearty
handshake and asked me II / wanted
TO become a Christian. | believe these
people do not care whether l am
saved or lost" / hope that no one
may be able to say that again at any
service in these meetings. mo man
careth for my soul" is the despairing
cry of many a discouraged heart
There must have been something
in the look upon Christs cOunte-
nance and in the tone OF His voice
that inspired hope in this poor
paralytic. We are saved by hope. The
Word Of God says so, and after we
have hope in our hearts il is an
easy climb up into the higher at
mosphere of faith. A vision Of heal
ing and of health fitted across his
mind. ooh would it not be glorious" :"
/ hear him exclaim to himself, IF |
could be made whole. If | could go
out like my brother does and do a
hard days work. What joy it would
bring to my sister and my parents,
who have cared for me so tenderly
all these years. 1 wish / could do
something to requite and repay their
! love" My friend, would it not be
glorious if you were saved, If you
could pass out of this tabernacle to-
night with the burden Of guilt anC
sin removed, and with the conscious
ness that you had become child OF
God and an heir to the everlasting
Kingdom? And come what may, life
or death, that all was we'll with you
and your future? You can have that
experience tonight, if you will.
Note what was implied in that
| question of Jesus, 'Wilt thou be made
whole?" Whole. holy, heal, hale and
healthy come from the same root
word. To be whole is to be healed
To be whole is to be healthy, to be
holy. Jesus implies that the sinful life
1 is the abnormal life. the diseased life
that the Christian life is the normal
and the healthy life.
But mark what He says. "Wilt thou
be made whole?" He does not say
Make yourself whole" To have done
so would have been to have jeered
at the mans helplessness. What He
says to the man is this, "Will you LET
the power of God come into your life
TO give victory over your weaknessg
To believe that God would ask us Ia
do anything and not give us the abil-
ity to do it would be to blot out the
conception from our minds Of a just
and loving God. What is il to be-
lieve in Christ? At least one thing is
to believe that when He gives us Z
commanh that with that command
He will also give us the power Il
obey the command.
Up to this time Christ had beer
dealing with the mans intellect. Nov
He strikes at his will Salvation
begins with right thinking. but ends
with right doing He says to tn
paralytic. Arise, take up thy bed anC
walk" can see him looking NJ
with that helpless expression, al
much as to say, "Why sir I canno
arise. II could have arisen, woulr