The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
In the little Galilean village of hunger
- Chapter 133 -
A miracle of food and clothing in the little village of hunger. The enlightened child. The Lord's Word to the heavens. Jesus and the child.
Hearing this all the poor people hurry with gratitude and faith into their half-destroyed houses and are amazed when they find the tables laden with plenty of good food and also all kinds of clothes for old and young, big and small and for both sexes separately. They ask each other how this has come about, but no one knows the answer.
2
When they find even their larder fully stocked, woman and children say to the men, 'That has been done by God! He who in the desert had for forty years manna rain and thus fed His children in an area of rock and sand where no grass grew. He would not have let us die since we have always prayed to Him. Oh, that is certain: God does not ever forsake the ones who implore Him.
3
David, the great king, prayed to God when he became wretched, and God helped him out of his great misery. God has never been known not to give a favourable hearing to those who sought His help. It would have been an unprecedented case if God had not granted our prayers in this our greatest distress, for God is always full of love for those who call to Him: "Abba, dear Father!" Therefore, let us from now on love Him above all! He alone is our deliverer! Our most holy Father sent us all this from the heavens through His holy angels.'
4
Says the old man who happened to belong to this particular family where the whole village used to gather to listen to his wisdom, for he was well versed in the Scripture, 'My children, friends and brothers. It is written: "From the mouth of the little ones and babes I shall have myself praised!" And look, here we have it before our eyes and ears. The dear Father has looked at us in His great mercy and had done this for us! To Him be therefore all our love and praise from the mouth of our babes, for the praise from our mouths is not sufficiently pure to be pleasing to the Almighty. That is why He has prepared for Himself the mouth of our babes. But now let us go outside to the young who sent us to our houses and no doubt knew what God had done for us. He must be a great prophet - maybe even Elias who is to come once more prior to the hoped-for and already long since promised Messiah.'
5
Says a little child that has only recently started to talk, 'Father! Could not this man himself be the great Promised One?'
6
Says the old man, 'O child, who loosened your tongue so clearly? For you did not speak like a child just now, but like a sage at the temple in Jerusalem.'
7
Says the little child, 'I do not know about that, only that prior to this talking was so difficult for me and now so very easy, - that I do know. But why should this surprise you, since we are surrounded by God's wonders?'
8
Says the old man, pressing the little child to his heart, 'Yes, yes, you are right! Everything here is a wonder, and you are surely not wrong if you even take the young man to be the Messiah. For us He is certainly that. But let us now go outside to Him and dutifully render our gratitude also to Him in the name of Jehovah, for He was obviously sent to us by God. So let us hurry outside to Him.'
9
Now they all hurry outside to Me and the little children are the first to throw themselves at My feet bedewing them with their innocent, purest tears of gratitude and joy.
10
But I gaze up at the firmament and say in a loud voice, 'You heavens! Do look down and learn from these little children how your God and Father wants to be praised! O creation, how endlessly vast and ancient you are and how countless the number of your wise citizens, and yet you could not find the way to the heart of your Creator, your Father, like these little children. Therefore, I tell you, 'Who does not come to Me like these little ones, will not find the Father.'
11
Thereupon I sat down and blessed and caressed the little children. And the little child said to the old man who called out in some confusion, 'How is that? Why? How are we to comprehend this?', 'Father, there is more than Elias here, more than your Messiah. Here is the Father Himself, the good Father who brought us bread, milk and clothing.'
12
The old man begins to weep, but the little child leans his head against My bosom which he begins to kiss and caress, and after a while he says, 'Yes, yes, I hear it, here in his bosom the true, good Father's heart is beating. Oh, if I could only kiss it too!' Says the old man, 'But little one, do not be naughty.'
13
Say I, unless all of you become that naughty, you will never come as close to the Father's heart as this dear little child.'