Julian was not a little boy. He was an adult man with good muscular arms and strong legs. But he would never be as tall as a normal man, for Julian was a dwarf. However, he was a normal man in every other way.
There was a lot that little Julian did not know, but one thing he knew for sure - that the Lord Jesus loved him, had died for him and had satisfied his heart.
Perhaps some of you may know the song:
“Now none but Christ can satisfy,
None other name for me!
There’s love and life and lasting joy,
Lord Jesus, found in Thee!”
Julian did not know the words of that song, but he knew the fact that Christ can satisfy, and perhaps in this he was wiser than you are.
How could Julian spread this good news? It was a dangerous thing to do, because he lived in a country where the penalty for telling others about any other than the country’s religion was imprisonment and death. And Julian knew this well. He had good reason to stay at home and love his Saviour in secret. But inside his heart was the pressing power of God’s love.
Julian packed up some bright fabrics and set out as a traveling salesman. His secret was well hidden inside rolls of beautiful cloth and lace. These beautiful goods opened doors to Julian, even in homes which were specially built for people of a religious order. In these homes, he spread out his pretty things for sale and, among them, the forbidden book! Sometimes he showed them just a few pages, but they were looked at with gasps of delight and fear.
What book could this be? What book has caused more delight and more hatred than any other book on earth? Of course, it was the Bible - the written Word of God! But it was only talked about in whispers, for no one must believe any but the country’s religion. It was a deep religion with some truth in it, but never telling of God’s offer of the forgiveness of sins or the powerful knowledge of Christ Himself.
Julian’s customers admired his pretty things, and he made some sales. Some of them dared to buy his hidden book, but they wondered why he was risking his freedom and his life to bring this treasure to them.
“Why do you do it, Julian? Don’t you know that someday they will catch you and throw you into the dungeon? Why do you risk your life?”
And he answered, “For the joy of bringing bread to the hungry and water to the perishing!”
I wonder if you understand what Julian meant - that Christ Himself is bread for the hungry and that without Him you are perishing forever. Christ is most truly the bread of life and the living water, and no religion will ever supply this for you. No religion will ever take away one sin. It is only Jesus who can take away your sins. It is Jesus Himself who died for you and rose again and is coming back. It is our joy to tell you this truth from Julian’s hidden book - the Bible.
Little Julian was captured after all, and he was soon with Jesus. I think Julian might have said as Paul did, “That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings” (Philippians 3:1010That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; (Philippians 3:10)). Yes, Julian is with Jesus now, and his body in the grave will be raised and made new, and he will spend eternity with Jesus forever. Will you?
ML-01/27/2002