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D.L. Moody

Dwight Lyman Moody (1837 - 1899). American evangelist, publisher, and founder of Moody Bible Institute, born in Northfield, Massachusetts, to a poor Unitarian family. Leaving home at 17, he worked as a shoe salesman in Boston, converting to Christianity in 1855 through his Sunday school teacher. Moving to Chicago, he founded a Sunday school for street children, growing it to 1,500 attendees by 1860. Without formal ordination, he preached across the U.S. and Britain, holding campaigns with song leader Ira Sankey, drawing millions, including 130,000 in London in 1875. Moody authored books like Heaven (1880) and founded the Chicago Evangelization Society (1889), now Moody Bible Institute, training thousands of missionaries. Married to Emma Revell in 1862, they had three children. His practical, love-focused sermons bridged denominations, influencing figures like Billy Graham. He established Northfield Conferences, fostering global missions, and raised funds for Chicago’s YMCA. Moody’s tireless work, delivering over 100 sermons annually, transformed 19th-century evangelicalism. His maxim, “If this world is going to be reached, I am convinced it must be done by men and women of average talent with hearts on fire,” drives his enduring legacy.
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Sermon Summary
D.L. Moody shares the story of Blind Bartimeus, a blind beggar who, despite his condition and the crowd's attempts to silence him, cries out to Jesus for mercy. He learns of Jesus' healing power and, filled with hope, calls out even louder when he realizes Jesus is near. Moody emphasizes Bartimeus' faith and determination to seek help from the one who can heal him, illustrating the importance of persistence in prayer and faith in Jesus' ability to transform lives. Ultimately, Bartimeus' earnest plea reaches Jesus, demonstrating that no one is too insignificant to be heard by God.
Blind Bartimeus
The apostle was going into Jericho for the last time. By the wayside he finds a poor, blind beggar who asks for a farthing, and he says, "Silver and gold have I none, but I can tell you of a great physician in Israel who can cure you." "Can cure me?" he says. "I was born blind." "Yes, but I have talked to a man in Jerusalem who says he was born blind, but now he sees." "Why," says Bartimeus, "how is that?" "Well, sir, Jesus of Nazareth was in Jerusalem, and a boy, he said, led him up to Him, and He just made clay with spittle and anointed his eyes, and sent him to wash in the pool of Siloam. If you could only go up to Jerusalem, all you would have do would be to tell Him. He don't charge anything." "He don't charge anything?" "No, He treats princes, potentates, and penniless all alike, for nothing; you have only to come before Him, and ask Him." I can see Bartimeus' eyes light up as he cries out, "If I can get my eyes by asking, I will get them." He takes his place by the wayside in expectancy. All at once he hears some one coming, and he cries out, "Who is coming? What does it mean?" At this no one answers him, but he begins to mistrust that it is Jesus of Nazareth. He has been told how great crowds flock about Him. And he cried out again in a louder voice, and they told him Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he cried again, then, with all his might, "Thou son of David, have mercy upon me." Some in the crowd thought Christ was going up to Jerusalem to be crowned king, and did not want Him to be disturbed by the blind beggar; they cried out not to disturb the Master, but the beggar would not cease, but cried all the louder, "Thou son of David, have mercy upon me." And the prayer reached the ear of the Son of God, and he hushed all the voices about Him while He heard the earnest suitor. There was no mistake.
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Dwight Lyman Moody (1837 - 1899). American evangelist, publisher, and founder of Moody Bible Institute, born in Northfield, Massachusetts, to a poor Unitarian family. Leaving home at 17, he worked as a shoe salesman in Boston, converting to Christianity in 1855 through his Sunday school teacher. Moving to Chicago, he founded a Sunday school for street children, growing it to 1,500 attendees by 1860. Without formal ordination, he preached across the U.S. and Britain, holding campaigns with song leader Ira Sankey, drawing millions, including 130,000 in London in 1875. Moody authored books like Heaven (1880) and founded the Chicago Evangelization Society (1889), now Moody Bible Institute, training thousands of missionaries. Married to Emma Revell in 1862, they had three children. His practical, love-focused sermons bridged denominations, influencing figures like Billy Graham. He established Northfield Conferences, fostering global missions, and raised funds for Chicago’s YMCA. Moody’s tireless work, delivering over 100 sermons annually, transformed 19th-century evangelicalism. His maxim, “If this world is going to be reached, I am convinced it must be done by men and women of average talent with hearts on fire,” drives his enduring legacy.