om
God. But the man who had been blind knew better. When the Pharisees
tried to threaten him, he did not give an inch. He said:

"Who ever heard of anyone opening the eyes of the blind since the
world began? But this man did it. How could he have made me see, if he
hadn't come from God?"

When Jesus heard of this, he went and found the man who had been
blind, and asked him,

"Do you believe that I am the Son of God?"

The man answered,

"Yes, Lord, I believe."

The blind man had found his Messiah.

Then there was a man who was paralyzed so that he could not move. His
friends wanted to bring him to Jesus, but there were so many people
standing around the house where Jesus was teaching that they could not
get near him. But somehow or other they must get the sick man there.

Like many of the houses in Palestine, this house had a flat roof, with
a stairway leading up to it. They placed their friend on a mat,
carried him up the stairs, and cut a hole in the roof. After fastening
a rope to each corner of the mat, they gently lowered it to the floor,
right at Jesus' feet.

Jesus was glad when he saw the faith they had in him. He looked at the
helpless man, and said,

"Man, your sins are forgiven you."

There were scribes and Pharisees standing there, waiting, as usual, to
find fault with Jesus. They began to talk among themselves. They said:

"Who is this who is talking as if he were God? Such blasphemy! Who can
forgive sins, except God himself?"

But Jesus knew what they were saying, and he answered them:

"Which do you think is easier--to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you,'
or to say to this man, 'Pick up your mat and walk away'? I will show
you that I can do one as well as the other!"

He turned to the paralyzed man and said,

"Pick up your mat, and go on back to your house."

The sick man got up from the floor, rolled up the mat and put it under
his arm, and went home. As he walked, there was a song of praise to
God in his heart. And many of the people who saw what had happened
were so surprised that they did not know whether to be glad or to be
afraid. But they all agreed on one thing. They said,

"We have seen strange things today!"

[Illustration]

Nothing that Jesus did seemed to please the Pharisees. But there was
one thing that made them especially angry. He was not so careful as
they thought he ought to be about keeping the Law.

Now the Law meant everything to the Pharisees. They were so