Suddenly everything he had heard and thought he believed, everything he had read and written and spoken about the man Jesus whom Christians called the Christ—every word had to be seen in an altogether changed light!

He had seen a man live the very servanthood of which Jesus spoke, to the very point of laying down his life for his friends.

He was himself alive because a man took the words of his Master, Jesus, seriously enough to do them, and to follow that Master’s example.

Heziah had always been taught to believe that the death of Jesus had no meaning beyond that of any mortal man’s death. After all, death came to everyone eventually. But now he had witnessed, with tears in his aged Jewish eyes, a Christian following in those same ancient footsteps of sacrifice.

Death could bring life. He had seen it happen!

The baron’s submission corroborated that simple fact! How could he look upon what he had seen and be anything but changed for all time? If the baron then could exemplify—in a small earthly way, for a handful of people—the principle of a willing sacrifice giving life, then what might the death of Jesus mean to all of mankind… if what the Christians had always been saying might possibly be true: that he was indeed the Son of God!

How could a Jewish rabbi be thinking such thoughts?

Heziah could not deny that all of a sudden everything had to be examined anew!

Such his brain had been busily doing every waking minute ever since.

The living example of a life truly lived was more powerful than all the books in all the libraries of the world!

He had seen a change come over the countenance of Marion von Dortmann as well.

He knew that the profound truth of what her husband had done was steadily deepening in her heart. Initial grief was being replaced by the reality of how complete his love had always been.

Marion too had spent much of these three weeks recalling his words. So much now came back that they had shared through the years, every word now heavily pregnant with more solemn and eternally substantive meaning. She had always known what a unique man he was. Yet now, in his absence, that special bond they had shared pierced all the deeper into her heart, mingling both the thorns and the blossoms of the red roses they had always shared.

Especially did his words return to the inner ear of Marion’s heart that death can do nothing, nor could it separate those who loved and who remained in the hands of the Father.