The Great Gospel of John
Volume 8
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord and His adversaries
- Chapter 172 -
The arrival of Kado, the son of the innkeeper.
While everyone was now hastily very busy, the innkeeper came to Me again, thanked Me once more for the message and said very friendly: "Lord and Master, I am the second blind one who You have now made seeing, for I am beginning to see now the great treasures that are exalted above everything, and to understand well that the greatest salvation has now come to my house. Yes, when one considers these treasures with the heart and the mind, then we see how completely worthless all earthly treasures are, and how empty, how repulsive. But what can man do about it when, being already unwillingly born on this world in the deepest night and in complete ignorance he considers that which is the most worthless as the most precious and wears himself out day and night to gather great heaps of this earthly mud?
2
Give man already from his youth a good light and teach him to know the true God and himself, then he will not eagerly desire earthly treasures, but only the treasure of life. But who are the teachers who are capable to show men what they need most? Therefore I ask You, dear Lord and Master, send teachers with Your way of acting among the people, so that they can become real men by them."
3
I said: "Now you have spoken well, and what you have told Me about your wish, is now being carried out. However, a tree does not fall down with one blow, and as for all great and good works, time and patience are needed according to God's eternal order. But every man, who has perceived for himself the truth of life, can and should also announce it to his fellowmen, then easily and soon there will be light in the hearts of men.
4
Whoever will accept and also heed faithfully the true commandments of life that I have shown you, will also soon come to the fullest light of life. I do not have to say more. Do it, then you will receive eternal life.
5
But now you can look with your men on the spot where the old and the new roads are crossing each other. As soon as you will arrive there, you will also meet your son Kado. But take a torch, so that your son will recognize you soon, and you will recognize him too. But bring him then to this place, for I have to talk with him."
6
After these words, the innkeeper left hastily the taproom, and went with his men and several neighbors to meet his arriving son. As soon as he came at the indicated spot his son Kado arrived, sitting on a mule. He recognized his father immediately, and there was almost no end to the embracing and fondling.
7
Only after that, the son asked his father how he actually knew about his arrival.
8
Then the father said: "Dear son, in a very wonderful way. However, I cannot tell you more now. When you will be home, you will hear all the rest."
9
Then they all went quickly to the city and they soon came to us amidst loud rejoicing.
10
When the son Kado with his only wife and his children came into our taproom, the first thing he did was to ask whom of those who were present knew so precisely about his arrival in Jericho.
11
And the father led him directly to Me and said: "Look, my beloved son, this Man is the Lord and the great Master. But just look also to our old, blind beggar who you still know well. The Lord and Master gave him back the light in his eyes, and for this He did not use anything else except His word and will. What do you say about that and what do you think about such a Man?"
12
The son looked for awhile with great attention once at Me and then again at the beggar who was now completely seeing, and then he said: "My beloved father, I surely will not be mistaken when I say that this must be the Man about who I already in Greece, in Asia Minor and even along the Asiatic coast of the great Pontus have heard many extraordinary things. For His sake I have sold everything in Athens and I went to Palestine in order to establish myself here, mainly in order to be personally acquainted with this great Man of wonders - and just look now, the One who I wanted to search above all is now already nearly for sure in our house.
13
You know, dear father that during the past 14 years I have done great business and have by that acquired also great riches. The reason why I now for already more than 2 years was not able to give any news of myself was that I have done my business in Asia Minor and over the whole Pontus. There I heard so much about the Man of wonders that I soon took the decision to sell all my business together with the houses and other goods to a brother of this lovely wife of mine, to move to this place and to be acquainted with this famous Man.
14
During the past time - only half year ago - I have done business in Phrygia with a certain king Abgarus of that region, and so I told him much of what I had experienced on my great trips over water and over land. Among other subjects we came also to talk about our great Man of wonders and I was greatly surprised when that formerly mentioned king could tell me more about that Man of whom he spoke as if He is a godly Being, and he even assured me on his word of honor that he knew Him personally and that he was His friend. He described also the appearance and the clothing of the Man of wonders and this corresponds completely with what I now have seen from this true Man of God. And that is why I said now that He most certainly will be the Man for whose sake I have done what I have told you earlier.
15
But now there is still another important thing. If this will also correspond, then I have what I wanted to find here. The formerly named king to whom I gave the fullest assurance that I would as soon as possible do everything possible to be acquainted with the great Man of wonders myself, wrote a letter with the inscription: 'To the good Savior Jesus at Nazareth in Galilee'. This letter I have with me and I will show it immediately. But first I have to relate about a circumstance which seems very essential to me."