Saturday, January 5, 2008

No Sex Scandal

The Billy Graham Library is one of a kind in the world. It is not the normal library which has rows of books. It is rather a center which features the life and ministry of Billy Graham through large screen video presentation. Large posters displaying his evangelistic crusades around the globe are posted at strategic place. It displays many of his personal things which are associated with his evangelistic campaigns. One prominent one which caught my attention is the Bible that he read and studied and has his personal notes at the margins of the Bible. From the look of it, one could guess that Billy Graham is a serious student of God’s word. How else could he thunder so convincingly each time he stepped into the lectern: “The Bible says….” If he has not soaked or saturated himself with the word of God.

I stood there in one of the rooms speechless when I saw Billy Graham (Video presentation) placed his Bible on the stump of a tree, he kneeled and prayed to God and exclaimed that he accepted and believed the Bible in totality as the inspired word of God by faith. After that singular moment of utter surrender, Billy Graham never waivers for one bit about the Word of God. Always with the Bible in one hand and the other hand gesturing vehemently, he would speak with great confident and summoned the crowd to come to Christ and to put their faith in Him. “The Bible says!” is his clarion call. We can better appreciate this incident when we understand the context that Billy Graham was in. During the early stage of his ministry, it was a time when Bible was subjected to higher critical method of interpretation. Many doubted whether the Bible could be trusted in its entirety. Miracles recorded in the Bible defy rationale and were considered untrue. Charles Templeton, a better preacher and more brilliant man than Billy Graham in those days, shipwrecked his faith because he rejected the authority of the Word of God. Templeton did not believe that the Word of God is fully inspired and therefore could not be trusted completely. Billy Graham too struggled but he came to a settled conviction and by faith took the Bible at face value as the Word of God. He never looked back.

No wonder God uses Billy Graham as His mouthpiece to convict hundreds of thousands of people of their sins and to turn them to Him.

No wonder God uses Billy Graham to bring revival and renewal around the world.

No wonder no one can indict Billy Graham of any scandals. He is completely above board with regards to sex, money and power.

Billy Graham has anchored his life and ministry solidly upon the Word of God.

In an age when politicians, movie celebrities, spiritual and business leaders at the ecclesiastical and corporate world faltered and hogged headlines because of sexual or financial impropriety, Billy Graham stands tall. Billy Graham merely stands in biblical tradition where great men and women who were greatly used by God because they held on to the Word of God and allow it to shape and mould their lives.

“For the gracious hand of his God was on him because Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws…” (Ezra 7:9-10)

3 comments:

sp lim said...

I'm not sure whether this is true but I've heard that Billy Graham never allows himself to be in a lift or a room alone with another woman other than his wife. I guess he realized the awesome responsibility that has been placed upon his shoulders as one of the evangelical world main leaders. If he falls many may shipwrecked their faith as well and non believers will also hold Christianity in contempt.

Maybe he also know the power of indwelling sin in the believer. Those who think that a Christian no longer has the sinful nature is grossly mistaken.

No one has helped me to understand my sinful nature better than John Owen, the 17th century Puritan. Hope to write something about this in my blog in the coming days.

Sian Pheng

Anonymous said...

Good to have u back!

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