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R.A. Torrey: Strong Faith and Faithful Service · Traveler’s Tales

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  Some lives are loud, others are steady, and sometimes the most powerful legacy is not
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  found in a dramatic moment, but in a lifetime of quiet faithfulness.
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  This man may not be as widely known as some of his contemporaries, but his influence shaped
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  generations.
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  R.A.
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  Torrey.
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  If you've ever heard of the Moody Bible Institute or benefited from its ministry, you've felt
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  his influence.
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  If you've been helped by the preaching of D.L.
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  Moody, you've indirectly been helped by Torrey.
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  If you've read solid Bible teaching that stirred your confidence in the Word of God, then you
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  have walked a path that he helped clear.
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  But his story didn't begin with large crowds.
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  It began with a praying mother.
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  I'm Greg Dowdy, and you're listening to Traveler's Tales, produced by Enjoying the Journey.
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  On our own journeys of faith, it is helpful for us to remember and learn from the men
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  and women who faithfully followed Christ in history.
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  Yes, times have changed since these people lived.
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  The world looks different.
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  But the God in whom they trusted has not changed.
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  The gospel they proclaimed has not changed.
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  And the need for faithful believers has not changed.
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  Reuben Archer Torrey was born in 1856 into a wealthy Christian home.
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  His mother was a woman of deep conviction and consistent prayer.
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  Though the family held some doctrinal views that would later be refined, they honored
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  the Lord's Day and filled it with Scripture and worship.
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  Young Torrey was brilliant.
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  He entered college at 15.
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  But intelligence is no substitute for conversion.
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  While at Yale University, Torrey wrestled internally.
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  He sensed that God might be calling him into ministry.
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  And in his resistance, he reasoned that the safest way to avoid that calling was simply
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  to avoid becoming a Christian.
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  If you've ever seen someone do that, avoid surrender because they feared what obedience
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  might cost.
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  Torrey battled conviction.
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  He rejected sermons.
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  He dismissed the arguments.
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  But there was one thing he could not escape, his mother's prayers.
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  One night, overwhelmed with disappointment and the turmoil inside, Torrey sprang from
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  his bed intending to take his own life.
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  But in that dark, desperate moment, God met him.
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  Instead of ending his life, he surrendered it.
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  He later testified,
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  Though I had gotten over sermons and arguments and churches and everything else, I could
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  not get over my mother's prayers.
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  Friend, never underestimate what God can do through faithful prayer.
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  You may not see immediate results.
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  You may not live to see the harvest.
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  Torrey's mother would die just two years after his conversion.
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  But heaven keeps record of every tear, every plea.
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  James 5.16 says the effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
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  Keep praying.
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  God is working even when you cannot see it.
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  Torrey's surrender did not end his struggles.
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  For several years, he wrestled intellectually with the authority and inerrancy of Scripture.
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  Could the Bible truly be trusted as the very Word of God?
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  He examined it.
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  He questioned it.
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  He weighed it.
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  And finally, by faith, he accepted that the Bible is exactly what it claims to be, God's
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  perfect book.
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  That decision shaped the rest of his life.
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  From that point forward, Torrey preached the Word with conviction.
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  He wrote extensively in defense of it.
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  He saw thousands come to Christ through its power.
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  Here is the lesson.
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  Your view of Scripture will determine the direction of your life.
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  If it is merely an inspirational book, it will lightly influence you.
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  If it is truly authoritative, it will govern you.
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  And Torrey chose to stand on it, and God used him mightily.
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  He served as pastor, educator, evangelist, and author.
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  He became the first president of Moody Bible Institute.
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  He pastored churches in Chicago and Los Angeles.
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  He traveled the world preaching Christ, seeing over 100,000 conversions.
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  In Australia alone, it is said that 20,000 trusted Christ during his meetings.
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  But perhaps his greatest impact wasn't in numbers or in public ministry.
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  It was in integrity.
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  His public ministry and private life matched.
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  His daughter once wrote something remarkable.
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  She said, if I were not a believer, the very consistency of my father's life would force
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  me to become a believer.
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  That may be one of the highest compliments a Christian can receive.
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  Integrity is not perfection.
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  It is consistency.
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  It is walking with God in public and in private.
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  It is being the same person at home that you are in the pulpit.
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  And that is where Proverbs 20 verse 7 comes alive.
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  The Bible says, the just man walketh in his integrity.
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  His children are blessed after him.
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  Torrey's life blessed more than crowds.
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  It blessed his family.
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  It strengthened institutions.
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  It extended the ministry of others.
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  He was not trying to build a platform.
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  He was striving for faithfulness.
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  What stands out about R.A. Torrey is not just what he accomplished, but what he overcame
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  a resistant heart, a suicidal night, intellectual doubt, and through it all, prayer, surrender
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  and steady obedience.
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  So let me ask you, is there someone you need to keep praying for?
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  Is there an area where you need to settle your confidence in the Word of God?
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  Is your private life strengthening or undermining your public ministry?
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  Torrey was not a great man because he was flawless.
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  He was a great man because he was faithful.
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  He walked with integrity.
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  And long after his voice fell silent, his life still continues to bless others.
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  Friend, we serve the same master he served.
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  We hold the same book he defended.
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  We approach the same throne of grace where his dear mother poured out her prayers.
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  May we, by God's grace, be found faithful.
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  Thank you for traveling with me today.
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  Thank God for testimonies like these that challenge us to live for Christ and challenge
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  us to impact our generation with the gospel.
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  We encourage you to visit us at etj.bible to find many free resources that will teach
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  you, inspire you, equip you to be the Christian God has saved you to be.