IT TAKES GUTS TO SAY "JESUS"
This is a true story of something that happened just a few
years ago at USC. There was a professor of philosophy there who was a
deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to
spend the entire semester attempting to prove that God couldn't exist.
His students
were always afraid to argue with him because of his impeccable logic.
For twenty years, he had taught this class and no one had ever had the
courage to go against him. Sure, some had argued in class at times,but
no one had every "really gone against him" you'll see what I mean later.)
Nobody would go against him because he had a reputation. At the end of
every semester, on the last day, he would say to his class of 300
students, "If there is anyone here who still believes in Jesus, stand
up!" In twenty years, no one had ever stood up. They knew what he was
going to do next. He would say, "because anyone who does believe in God
is a fool. If God existed, he could stop this piece of chalk from hitting
the ground and breaking. Such a simple task to prove that he is God, and
yet he can't do it." And every year, he would drop the chalk onto the
tile floor of the classroom and it would shatter into a hundred pieces.
All of the students could do nothing but stop and stare. Most of the
students were convinced that God couldn't exist. Certainly, a number of
Christians had slipped through, but for 20 years, they had been too
afraid to stand up. Well, a few years ago, there was a freshman who
happened to get
enrolled in the class. He was a Christian, and had heard the stories
about his professor. He had to take the class because it was one of the
required classes for his major, and he was afraid. But for 3 months that
semester, he prayed every morning that he would have the courage to stand
up no matter what the professor said or what the class thought. Nothing
they said or did could ever shatter his faith, he hoped. Finally, the day
came. The professor said, "If there is anyone here who still believes in
God, stand up!" The professor and the class of 300 people looked at him,
shocked, as he stood up at the back of the classroom. The professor
shouted, "you FOOL! if God existed, he could keep this piece of chalk
from breaking when it hit the ground." He proceeded to drop the chalk,
but as he did, it slipped out of his fingers, off his shirt cuff, onto
the pleats of his pants, down his leg, and off his shoe. As it hit the
ground, it simply rolled way, unbroken. The professor's jaw dropped as he
stared at the chalk. He looked up at the young man and then ran out of
the lecture hall. The young man who had stood up proceeded to walk to the
front of the room and share his faith in Jesus for the next half hour.
300 students stayed and listened as he told of God's love for them and of
his power through Jesus.
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