-------------------
The author's baseline is doctrine determines salvation. There is no Bible verse that says this, but it gives the author the excuse to level accusations at a man who has done more for the Kingdom than the author ever will.
The author's baseline is doctrine determines salvation. There is no Bible verse that says this, but it gives the author the excuse to level accusations at a man who has done more for the Kingdom than the author ever will.
And we note that as is typical for the Doctrinal Police, very little Scripture appears in this screed.
----------------------
Billy Graham has long been heralded as Evangelicalism’s greatest preacher in modern history and is nearly canonized as a saint by Evangelicals of all types. Yet, despite his popularity, charity, and seemingly moral character, (Seemingly? Does the author have evidence of moral failure? More likely, he is attempting to prejudice the reader by planting doubts he will never document.)
Billy Graham has long been heralded as Evangelicalism’s greatest preacher in modern history and is nearly canonized as a saint by Evangelicals of all types. Yet, despite his popularity, charity, and seemingly moral character, (Seemingly? Does the author have evidence of moral failure? More likely, he is attempting to prejudice the reader by planting doubts he will never document.)
his theology was grossly unbiblical reaching the point of rank heresy at times. ("Rank heresy" is quite a claim. Let's see if the author documents it.)
This is why Billy Graham makes #28 in our False Teacher of the Day series.
Billy Graham no doubt had some great moments of preaching throughout his career and his crusades garnered, at times, hundreds of thousands of people. Many true believers owe their conversion to Graham’s preaching. Of course, it would better be said that they owe their conversion to God who, despite Graham’s serious errors, used Graham’s preaching to convert them. There is no doubt about that–at times, he did appear to faithfully preach Christ and Him crucified. (Notice the equivocating language. "At times" Graham did some pretty good things. He had some "great moments." Yet Graham was a false teacher. How is this possible?
Billy Graham no doubt had some great moments of preaching throughout his career and his crusades garnered, at times, hundreds of thousands of people. Many true believers owe their conversion to Graham’s preaching. Of course, it would better be said that they owe their conversion to God who, despite Graham’s serious errors, used Graham’s preaching to convert them. There is no doubt about that–at times, he did appear to faithfully preach Christ and Him crucified. (Notice the equivocating language. "At times" Graham did some pretty good things. He had some "great moments." Yet Graham was a false teacher. How is this possible?
We find a detailed description of what constitutes a false teacher here:
2Pe. 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.
The author does not reference or quote this verse. If he had, he would discover that Graham does not qualify as a false teacher, for a false teacher will
- secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them — bringing swift destruction on themselves.
- bring the way of truth into disrepute.
- exploit you with stories they have made up.
- carouse in broad daylight.
- never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed
- mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature
A false teacher is not simply someone who has some doctrines wrong. There is clear and persistent evidence of an immoral life.)
But it’s those other times–when he actually denied Christ and the resurrection–that places Graham into the camp of false teacher. (Graham did not deny Christ and the resurrection.)
Billy Graham was undoubtedly an ecumenicalist as he praised the pope as his “brother” and treated Roman Catholicism as a valid expression of the Christian faith.
“I think he’s with the Lord, because he believed,” Graham said of the pope. “He believed in the Cross. That was his focus throughout his ministry, the Cross, no matter if you were talking to him from a personal issue or an ethical problem, he felt that there was the answer to all of our problems, the cross, and the resurrection. And he was a strong believer.” (The author needs to demonstrate his knowledge of the eternal state of this one man, the Pope. Catholic doctrine is of course problematic, but doctrine does not speak to salvation status. Graham personally knew this Pope, and vouched for his salvation. That is quite an honorable thing.)
In the video below, Graham takes a similar approach to sound doctrine and says that you can also deny essential doctrines like the virgin birth and the resurrection and yet, somehow, in opposition to Jesus’ own words, can still be “true believers.”
“Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son.” –1 John 2:22
Video (Graham makes no statement about denying Christ.)
To make matters worse, Billy Graham not only affirmed Roman Catholics as valid Christian brothers and sisters (The author would need to demonstrate that there are no Christians in the Catholic church.)
and denied the importance of the resurrection and virgin birth, (In the video, Graham affirmed the critical importance of these doctrines as they applied to himself.)
but during an interview with the Universalist, Robert Schuller, Graham denies the exclusivity of Christ and even states that those who have never heard the name of Jesus Christ can be saved as long as they are turning to “only light that they have.” In other words, you can worship a false god and still be saved, according to Graham. (We have doubts at this point that the author is accurately representing the issue. We should note also that Jesus explicitly says that certain people who never heard the gospel are in heaven [Lk. 13:28].
But more to the point, can God save people in places where the gospel has never been preached? This is a question that has been debated for centuries, and a topic deserving so much more than the author's glib statements.)
Despite Graham’s good moments in his career, (Graham just had "moments." And apparently they are rare moments, because Graham is actually evil, a heretic, and a false teacher. Despite decades of preaching the gospel, millions of people saved, a life lived without any evidence of unholy behavior, the author wants to condemn Graham to hell for some unfortunate statements. Hm.)
it is pertinent that he not be held up as a faithful minister of God’s word. He was not. The Scriptures teach that even the worst haters of God masquerade as faithful ministers, but are still ravenous wolves (2 Corinthians 11:14). We can’t know for sure what Graham’s true intentions were when he denied certain essential doctrines of the faith, (Ah, the author abandons his former certainty. It is a shame that he doesn't consider the question in the context of Graham's fruit.)
but we certainly know that the enemy used Graham’s reputation as an “angel of light” to spread false doctrine and heresy–and still does to this day.
No comments:
Post a Comment