"I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will
put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him." -
Deuteronomy 18:18
Stan Telchin, a successful Jewish businessman, felt betrayed when his
21-year-old daughter, Judy, called home from college to say, "I believe Jesus is
the Messiah." In his book "Betrayed", Telchin writes that Judy's conversion
threw the Telchin family into philosophical chaos.
Stan, in an effort to prove his daughter wrong, began an energetic quest for
truth. The search for answers spread to Stan's wife, Ethel, and to their other
daughter, Ann, who were both angered, perplexed, then curious, about Judy's
radically transformed behavior. When the search created friction between Stan
and Ethel, they agreed to pursue their studies independently.
Months later, Stan accepted an invitation to attend a National Convocation of
Messianic Jews. He planned to "work the convention" just like he was used to
doing with his business. He said, "I intended to meet with anyone who I thought
could help me, always probing for more information."
After a series of meetings, Stan lay awake in his dorm room, thinking about his
journey. He had arrived at a point of crisis. If the Bible was true-and he had
concluded it was-then he really did believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. He also admitted to himself that he believed in the Bible as God's
inspired Word. But he couldn't quite say the words to himself, "Jesus is the
Messiah." He asked his roommate, Art, to pray for him. Art obliged, praying
simply, "God give Stan your peace, and resolve his inner conflict."
The next morning at breakfast one of the men at Stan's table asked him to pray
before the meal. Startled by the request, Stan bowed his head and said: "Praised
be Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe. I thank You for the fellowship
and the friendship at this table. I thank you for what we have learned at this
meeting. I ask You now to bless this food, and I do so...in the name of Jesus,
the Messiah."
For a moment, he sat there, amazed at what he had just prayed. It had not been
planned. The others at the table didn't miss it. Their faces were suddenly
jubilant. "Stan," said one of them, "You're a believer!" And one by one, they
each got up from their seats and hugged Stan. Several cried with joy. Stan began
to weep as well.
He wasn't sure how his wife would take the news, but he just had to call her.
Instead of his carefully crafted speech, he found himself blurting out, "Ethel,
honey, it's me. It's over. I've made my decision. Jesus is the Messiah!" There
was a pause on the other line as Stan held his breath.
Then his wife's voice came back softly, "Thank God! That makes it unanimous.
We've all been waiting for you."
Stan's entire family-his wife and both daughters-had also made their decisions
to trust Christ as the Messiah. They had each been praying, and waiting
patiently, for the Holy Spirit of Christ to draw Stan into a relationship with
Himself.
The purpose of all Scripture is to point to Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Today in
prayer, praise Christ for His saving grace and being our Savior.
"Jesus was God spelling himself out in language humanity could understand." -
S.D. Gordon
God's Word: "They were all filled with awe and praised God. 'A great prophet has
appeared among us,' they said. 'God has come to help his people.'" - Luke 7:16
By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2004, Devotional E-Mail DEVOTIONS IN EXODUS,
LEVITICUS, NUMBERS AND DEUTERONOMY
pkennedy@devotional.com
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
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