Before I go on, let me state that I love Billy Graham, his ministry, and his passion to spreading the Gospel.
What's bothering me though, is that he is among the most "admired men in the world." In Matthew 10:22, Jesus says:
"...you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."
Hated. Not loved, but hated. Isn't there a problem with this? When Jesus came into the world, men hated him. Why did they hate him? Because the Truth breaks pride, breaks strength, breaks self sufficiency. The Truth of the Gospel puts man at the bottom and God on top. The Truth of God's commandments show us how sinful we are. There is no room for "unity" in sin....if you are gay, repent. If you are living in sin (I am speaking specifically to lust), repent. If you lie, repent. If you are an alcoholic, repent. If you steal, repent. If you love the world, REPENT.
Do you see this? The Truth will always divide because it must! The LORD is separating His elect from the rest of the world. The world should not love us. And I don't mean that they should not love us because we are mean, but because we love God more than the world! Unregenerate men LOVE the world and love their sin. But they do not love God. And can we expect them to love us if they do not love God?
So I'm just wondering....what is it that makes Billy Graham "loved"?
That being said, before you all attack me....I'm just thinking this through. Your thoughts?
Here is something I remember reading....an interview with Billy Graham on Larry King. If you read it, it might explain why I am having such an issue with this!
8 comments:
We will be hated, it's true, but that doesn't mean we will always be hated. (Sounds like double talk, I know, but hang with me a moment.) We have this from Scripture:
"Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved" (Acts 2:46-47).
Just as Jesus was loved on His triumphal entry and hated at His trial, "hated by all" isn't necessarily "full time". =)
He is admired because he does what basically eveyone wants to do. Live their beliefs to the fullest. In the eyes of the world he has. He is also the only high profile man of God to never have had his name drug down through any of the worldly vices that so many other high profile evangelists have run into. People respect that more than anything else. Hated, by some I am sure. When ask to Washington DC to be given an award by lawmakers, at his acceptance he gave them a 20 minute sermon on faith based morality instead of saying thank you. They were pretty upset about that. (It implied that they were in need of such a sermon and that they morality was being called into question.) Billy Graham just always followed the Holy Spirits guidance, and was blessed for it. I think the whole world can see that and admire it.
I agree Stan.
What I should have said in my post is that it's not so much Billy Graham himself that bothers me. And it's not bad that people admire his zeal for preaching Christ! I mean, AMEN for that!!
What bothers me is that for the past 50 years he's been named as the top 10 most admired people in the world.
It seems worldly....as if to say that Christians will be admired for preaching Christ crucified.
It just seems to send the wrong message.
I'm not sure what I'm trying to say. I agree with you Stan, but something is just sitting wrong in my heart about it.
Hey Nate! Nice to hear from you again.
I enjoyed reading what you said...but I do disagree with a couple things:
1) No one lives their beliefs to their fullest
2) Billy Graham has grieved the Holy Spirit. We all do.
You know what I'm remembering now...this is what's bothering me.
I read an interview he did once on Larry King live.
"KING: But what about those faiths -- the Mormons and the others that you mentioned -- believe in Christ. They believe they will meet Christ. What about those like the Jews, the Muslims, who don't believe they ...
GRAHAM: That's in God's hands. I can't be the judge.
KING: You don't judge them?
GRAHAM: No.
KING: How do you feel...
(CROSSTALK)
GRAHAM: ... going to hell and all that.
KING: How do you feel when you see a lot of these strong Christian leaders go on television and say, you are condemned, you will live in hell if you do not accept Jesus Christ, and they are forceful and judgmental?
GRAHAM: Well, they have a right to say that, and they are true to a certain extent, but I don't -- that's not my calling. My calling is to preach the love of God and the forgiveness of God and the fact that he does forgive us. That's what the cross is all about, what the resurrection is all about, that's the gospel. And you can get off on all kinds of different side trends, and in my earlier ministry, I did the same, but as I got older, I guess I became more mellow and more forgiving and more loving. And the Jerry Falwells and people like that, I love them, I thank God for their ministry, he has a great university and two or three of my grandchildren have gone there, they have had a tremendous change in their lives for being there, and some of the other people are the same way, but at the other end of the extreme"
This is my problem exactly. I'm afraid people love him so much because he does not say the Truth. He knows that without Christ there is no salvation. To hide this fact...or not state it because "he is not the judge" is very sad!!
He is right, we are not the judges. God has already made the judgement. We just have to faithfully preach it.
And like I said, I love Billy Graham. I have no doubt that he loves God. I just fear that his watering down of the truth is hurting more people than he realizes.
Here's a link to that interview:
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0506/16/lkl.01.html
I won't take on Billy Graham, and I don't wish to offend his fans, but there are several problems that have come up with some things he has said in the last decade or two that have managed to blur the truth. Details are not important. I don't suggest we look to Graham for perfection ... as you well know. =)
I don't wish to offend him or his fans either.
The whole purpose for my post can be summed up in your last sentence. Nicely stated.
Samantha,I do not disagree with point 1 or 2. I said, "in the eyes of the world" he has lived his beliefs to the fullest. For point number 2, of course he is not perfect. But as your Wednesday blessings state, we are all blessed in one way or another, even though we do not understand it at the time. I also understand the need for some people to have the need to tell the truth as they understand it. But coming from a catholic upbringing, I am sure you can understand excommunication. That is where the priests (or whoever) take it upon themselves to usurp Jesus throne of judgement and be the person that decides who will get into the kingdom. Billy correctly said that he could not judge, because that is not his place. Paul and James in their epistles to the various belivers also spoke many times of not judging. To me that is the truth, and also he is obeying. His calling is to preach the love and forgiveness of God, not the hellfire and damnation. Each person has a role to play in the kingdom, and he just does his.
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