FA r HER'S ILLUS I HA lION

, Brethren, I want ,fo we

an earlhly thine to provide
for heavenly
ai1u.tion irl order to mow
to you how pereuliarthe,
W4y8 of God really. is,
confinn and IUlIUfe you
that it is only men wbo
eaD disappoint, but Goa
cannot disappoint anybo
dy. rather one can only
disappoint oneself. This'
testimony shall not only
console you but than also
conaoUdate your fai.,. in
God.
There was a certain
rich man who after re
ceiving the goopel as writ
.decided after all to use his
enormouS wealth to do
sanething for God just
to. put Him to tellt of what
He is capable of doing.
This young rich man
star1ed to use hls great
wealth to minister unto.
the >It is
said it is difficult for a
rich man to enter into the
kingdan of God, buj
equally them is no impe
: sible thing with God, and
: any willing child. of God
who is lich lind uses his.
wealth for. God, the same
is counted
.f0( him as ac1s of righ
te ous ness.
Afterall what else can
a man use his riches to.
d th t the alth
0. 111 0 use we .
hia blessed with to. serve
God and his fellow man.
The'yoWlg rich had iosur
render all his material pas
including his
enormous bank ICCOWlts.
rental collectims and the
rest o.f them. He surren
,

called hin\ all sort of One day, a leper emer were, starked in. some of
names in order to black- lJ.ld frem nowhere, and the ' storeys' for the Use
mail and frustrate his new his 'first port of call of 'the man of God. This
concept IIld idedogy. . at the various churches maJiifieentedifice Will
'The young man Will in the town, and at eaclihanded over by the leper
never discoura,ed, but io. of. the churches he
stead; he intensified cf he was chased away.
fom in preaching IIld He went to the trail
practising the gaspel, chieftains to ask for
tributing his great' we'8ltb, crwnbs of food and Utde
to foes and frleom In dif: .. water to quench his thirst,
ferent dimenliens.His but wherever he went, he
dresses, shoe.. ties, bed- chased away by angry
dnlfl, pieces' of dogt :or watclunen.
IIld all .d be was virtual HI went to the houses
1)' left y.ith noqrlng. &x- of in the
ceptthe. Hdy 'lible. md conununity,he, had ,simi
to the man of God with
all the papers and keys
relevant to its ownelSbip.
The "leper" later re.
vealed Himself to be Jesus
the Chiist who has come
'to compensate and richly
reward him (the man of
God) for his services to
God. and humanity. He
w.- crowned withhmou,r,
,wwer and sceptre of ru
perhapltho hymo boo\ lar . or . worse treatmentlershlp in the city.
ten in Matt 19:Z8-29,and 1ii18.. pralle. him.- an outcast
with which he paldlel from all of tbeJQ. They all
It Will a puzzling
tien to see a pellen who
was (Jlce multlbnUenaire
become a poor and
ched persen, thouah spid
tually he W3S super rich.
'He continued .to preach
the goopel and to do good
,'to various people all over
the place. The pride of'
wealth no longer smiled
at him ashe. had not
even a hut to Uve in.
his His clothin811
were' ail in ,ra8l,andhe
had no shoes en. People
staim d to, mock him.
'The little hut he .live.d
in at the outskirts of the
community was almoot
falUng down, but this did.
not in anyway .. perturb
him, he was never despgt
which all lepelJ at all
times are suppaled to be.
He became fed up with
the whole situatien.
Eventually! he went tO
the mill fi God,. tOe fOr,
mer billienaiIe, who il
now g great pi:eacher.. and
as SoUl as he saw him
from a distance, 'he ran
out .frqn his UttJohut to
welcome 1119 embracohim
(the leper:h an4 the leper
even felt the JdndDessWl!l: thinlfl CID fail you,
too much CCGlidednS bi.Jn;.: but God fall you.
self an untouchible, 1il4 ,nat is why it 11 of.n
so withdrew frotn .mbn-. Ja4, "live me leu Cuilt,
.clnl the preacher. . , taQ:i,.,ay all' earthly
The'man of Godtook GUnst; Chrilt iuverytbin&
him. into his .. and al... ..diil aU thin.".
though he had little or no .
food, he did the best he
,could to' feed him (the
dent, and with all humlli-lei>er) and keep him
ty, he enjoyeditall.'fortable. The man of God
After his daily evange
lical duties which he en
joyed, ven- much, he
'would retire to. the dilap"
dated hut singing and glo-,
dfying his God for the.
dered all the deb. owed.newsituatien his daring
to him which amOWlted 'Venture had subjected bini
to milliens of naira. ,to. No amoUnt of black-
He gave the and name calling de
. buildings and estates he
had to people with abject
abandm such that the
people of the community
socn regarded. him' as a
demented pemm. They
tered him from his new
found concept. and tea-:
ching of love. ene fOt
111 other. He had absolute
satisfactim in what he'
.did and believed in.
wanted to. sleep with the
leper en his little floor
mat, but the mystery man
objected tQ the offer.
Fm'8IJy \ they' all slept
cif,' and when it was 1 a.m
precisely, the leper woke
up the man of God to
witness the. greatest sur.
prise of his life .
,There was a 12.torey
ultra-modem building with
the 'latest fumishln81 to
suit the taste of
.people. BilUms of. naira,:
All fornlSof riches
were returned to him a
hbndred faid. The man
d. God was amazed and
Milt into the city to tell
them to' come and Witnea .
a
thing of great wender.'
Retold the peOple
JeIUS the Christhadcome..
However,. before he could,
come back, the myatery
man, the leper had dislp-'
peared.
'l'his lmpreaiveltory
W. :thown UI' ,iha,t aU
"u]/-dfr- til, ..
III I,. "'"
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