BLIND BARTIMAEUS

 Blind Bartimaeus, one more character we'd speak of just for a minute. I'd like to give you his life story, how that he was--how he made his living by little doves a-tumbling. And so, in them days they had a lamb that would lead a blind man, just like they have today a dog that leads the blind.And so one day, the story told that--about blind Bartimaeus, that (Jesus, before He'd come on the scene and...)--that he had a little girl that was sick. And he told--went out and cried, and prayed to the Lord, and said, "Lord, if You'll--if You just give me this life of my little girl... I--I've never been able to see her, but if You'll just let her live, I promise You tomorrow that I'll give You my two turtle doves." That's what he had to entertain the people. So many beggars, he had to have something unusual. So two little turtle doves that tumble over one another...
So he said... Well, he--he offered--give the offering, because the child got well.

 A few nights after that the wife got sick. And he made his way around the side of the house, and said, "Lord, I haven't got nothing else but my little lamb that leads me." He said, "If You let her get well," said, "I'll--I'll--I'll give You this lamb." And so the next day his wife got well.So here he was, going down. Said... The priest said, "Where goest thou, blind Bartimaeus?"
He said, "I'm going down to offer this lamb." Said, "My wife... Jehovah healed my wife." And said, "I'm going down to offer this lamb."
Said, "You can't offer that lamb, Bartimaeus." Said, "That lamb is your eyes."
He said, "But if Bartimaeus will obey his promise to God, God will provide a lamb for Bartimaeus's eyes."

 And one day he heard a racket coming through the city, some of them hollering, "Say, you prophet of Galilee, they tell me that you raise the dead." That was the priest. "We got a graveyard full of them up here. Come up and raise some of them. They tell me you raise the dead. Let's see you go raise one of them. Some good men laying up there; let's see you raise them."Others said, "If thou be a prophet, tell me what I done yesterday."
Some of them said, "Glory to God in the highest. Make way for the King of Israel." All kinds of fusses, and hundreds of them...

 Now, if you'll go--ever go to Jericho and mark where he was setting, he was almost two hundred yards from where they went out the gate. Now, no doubt people crowded over him, and the poor old fellow setting there in the wind with--shivering, the rags around him, and no lamb to lead him, and no, and no doves. And he has probably no fuel in for the winter. And it might've been around October and it was cold. And there he set in that condition. And he...Some kind lady must've said to him, when he said, "Who... what's all the noise about?" You know, there's something strange, where Jesus is, there's always a lot of noise. See? That's right. He said, "What's all the noise about? Well," he said...
This kind lady (she must've been a follower of Jesus), she said, "You know, it--it's Jesus of Nazareth."
"Well, who's Jesus of Nazareth?"
"Well, you know, the Scripture says that the Lord God's going to raise up a prophet."
"Oh, yes. You mean the Son of David. Is He on earth?"
"Why, I have seen Him do just exactly... He is the Word. That's exactly."

 He cried, "Oh, Jesus, have... Oh, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Now, he knowed He's done got apast. He knowed his physical cry could not be heard. But he knowed if He was the Word, and He was that Messiah, He'd have to be a prophet, 'cause Messiah was a prophet. And he knowed that He could... His faith in God... No doubt but what he screamed out, "Jehovah, have mercy on me! Have mercy! Now, let me be able to stop Him!" And he cried, "Thou Son of David, have mercy upon me!" Probably, all the screams, He couldn't hear it, but his faith stopped Him. Jesus said so.And Jesus stood still. I want to preach on that, maybe one Sunday, "And Then Jesus Stood Still." And He stood still. He looked around, and He said, "Your faith has made you whole." At the darkest hour, then Jesus come along.Then Jesus came and called 64-0417