Meditate for a Moment - Introduction

Today we begin a series of blog postings that will likely prove to be many, many before the series is complete. In the spirit of brevity, we share the material in short bites. The bite-size portions will allow more time and space for us to develop the thoughts and more time and meditation for you to consider the thoughts. The authors are Pastor Darrow Duane Parker of Evangel Baptist Church, Queens, New York City and Dr. Howard L. Wilburn of Salem Baptist Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. That having been said, the following is the introduction to the study.

MEDITATE FOR A MOMENT

THIS IS JESUS, THE SON OF GOD.

He was, at the very least, the most remarkable person ever to walk this earth. He came with words too incredible to believe and with wonders too incredible to doubt. His footsteps shook the world, leaving a crevasse across the centuries, forever separating the eternal destiny of men. The prints left by those steps were made not by the hobnailed boots of a soldier or by the tailored footwear of a senator. They were made by sandals, sandals as unaccustomed to floors of marble as they were to fields of battle.

Who was the man who wore the sandals? Who was this man whose steps were so foreign to the corridors of power? Who was this man who wielded no sword, commanded no army, and yet forever changed time and eternity.

About him we know very little. We know next to nothing about his childhood, and comparatively little about his adulthood. And yet, the Apostle John tells us that if everything he did had been written on paper, the whole world would not have room for the books that would be produced. Yet, he himself wrote nothing and published nothing. His sermons were short; his prayers mostly private; his ministry a scant few years. And that scant few years changed the course of human history, the history of a human race already under judgment because of rebellion against the Almighty Creator. Now men and women have hope, hope for forgiveness, hope for the removal of the deserved judgment, and not only hope but a guarantee of an incredible eternity future.

Who was this man who changed the world, walking wherever he went in such ordinary sandals? His name was/is Jesus. Some knew him as Messiah. These articles will attempt to capture a few of the moments they shared with him. Each chapter is intended to draw you close to Jesus so you too can get to know him - and see the kindness in his eyes, hear the tenderness in his voice, feel the compassion in his heart, accept his gift of forgiveness, and worship him in spirit and in truth.

May you see in Jesus what others saw, hear what they heard, and feel what they felt. May you see him as your altogether beautiful Savior. May you fall at His feet to love the one who first loved you, and whose sandals the very greatest have always felt unworthy to loosen.

Howard L. Wilburn