|
The Power of God
This is a story of something that happened sometime ago at Southern
California.
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 |