"I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to
everyone who believes." - Paul (Romans 1:16)
"To the world the gospel doesn't look like power at all. It looks like
weakness--asking people to be like children and telling them to depend on
Jesus, instead of standing on their own two feet. But for those who believe,
it is the power of God to give sinners everlasting glory." -John Piper
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 ever '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 this
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 away, 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.
"Yet to all who received HIM, to those who believed in HIS name, HE gave
the right to become children of God--children born not of natural
descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of GOD."
"But HE knows the way that I take. When HE has tested me, I will come
forth as gold." Job 23:10
Please continue to pass this on from one Christian to the next as a
message of encouragement and hope.
(
geocities.com/southbeach)