Billy Graham has been instrumental in emphasizing conversion, instead of discipleship — setting the stage for the once-saved-always-saved deception that is mainstream today.
Billy even made excuses for Bill Clinton’s womanizing, laughing as he defended Bill Clinton, a DeMolay, in the Katie Couric interview.
Jeff
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From: newsletters.cephasministry.com…
Billy Graham Endorses a Masonic Youth Group
“This all started for me a year ago when I first started using the Internet that I stumbled across a Masonic web page that included a list of Famous Masons. On this original list were the names of Rev. Billy Graham and his good friend Norman Vincent Peale. …
The Masonic book [The Clergy and the Craft] was published in 1970 by a Freemason, Rev. Forrest D. Haggard, which clearly reveals Dr. Billy Graham’s approval of the Masonic youth organization DeMolay.
This same viewpoint is extended in course, to the youth organizations that affiliate with the Masonic lodge in most communities. This author has served as advisor to the Order of DeMolay and can testify to that excellent group. His wife has served in Job’s Daughters and many of the young ladies from his congregation have been in the Order of Rainbow. It is time that these groups are, not as competition, but allied organizations, as Dr. Billy Graham said: “I find two kinds of young people today First [?l or hand?] least important are those given to rebellion and violence. We have always had those even as far back as Cain and Abel. These vow to annihilate the “middle class” morality and ethic, and to toss away the time-honored traditions and ideals of yesteryear. But happily, this group is a tiny minority, with more noise than influence. Then there are thoughtful, concerned young people – who seek to correct errors in moral navigation that have been made by their elders, intelligently and responsibly. There are the young people upon which the hope of America’s future rests and DeMolays are part of this group.. May God richly bless all DeMolays as they continue their good work. …
Related:
When Billy Graham laughed to minimize Bill Clinton’s adultery
Billy Graham is an evangelist. Apologetics, translating the Gospel Message into categories that non-Christians can identify with as an INVITATION to dig deeper is a necessary compromise with mainline culture.
Perhaps, rather than fault Billy Graham, we should question why so many cradle Christians embraced Graham’s preaching as the “Full Gospel.”
The sad reality is that “Christianity/Churchianity” in America has become a civil religion, which is the worst thing that can happen to an authentic Spiritual Movement.
To many American Christians the Holy Trinity is no longer Father, Son and Holy Spirit, but God, Church and Country. The theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Love have been replaced by the civic virtue of the Protestant work ethic.
Under the influence of a Consumerist Capitalism, religion has becom just another business venture which depends on mass marketing, which means appealing to the lowest common denominator for success.
“In the beginning the church was a fellowship of men and women centering on the living Christ. Then the church moved to Greece where it became a philosophy. Then it moved to Rome where it became an institution. Next, it moved to Europe, where it became a culture. And, finally, it moved to America where it became an enterprise.” –Richard Halverson
In a rare interview in 1967 with Thomas McDonnell, [Thomas] Merton pronounced that the great crisis in the church is a crisis of authority precipitated because the church, as institution and organization, has overshadowed the reality of the church as a community of persons united in love and in Christ. He now charged that obedience and conformity with the impersonal corporation-church are a fact in the life of Christians. “The Church is preached as a communion, but is run in fact as a collectivity, and even as a totalitarian collectivity. ~ George Kilcourse, ACE OF FREEDOMS: Thomas Merton’s Christ
“We should be less concerned about making churches full of people and more concerned about making people full of God.” – C. Kirk Hadaway and David A. Roozen
“God doesn’t ask that we succeed in everything, but that we are faithful.” –Mother Teresa
Whatever Billy Graham’s role has been in the shaping of American “Christianity”, I believe that his motives, although not completely without self-interest, were fundamentally well-intentioned. Since only God has the power to look into his heart, let us give him the benefit of the doubt and focus on discerning the affects of Graham’s ministry for both good and ill and not judge the man himself.
Carol,
There are many reasons why the ‘church’ has become lifeless, being apart from Christ. And I agree with many of your explanations. However, we are supposed to judge those within the church (1 Cor. 5), especially the leaders who have led millions astray — even laughing about it in this case, “ha, ha, ha”:
When Billy Graham laughed to minimize Bill Clinton’s adultery
These one-time-decision mass meetings have had a lot to do with the fall of America, and the fact that many more ‘Christians’ are going to hell than heaven. And many don’t even know it, because of false teachers like Billy Graham and so many others.
The reality:
How Many Will Be in Heaven? How Many are Finding the WAY? Only 1 in 40 — 2.5%?!!
Who-Goes-To-Heaven Scriptures — Narrow is the Way | Who are the Children of God?
Paul named names. It’s right to help people see what is going on so they can escape deception and live in holiness, so they can see God, eternally, in peace.
Baruch: “Not only is DECEPTION of the church possible, it was PROPHESIED TO HAPPEN!” — Jesus said “IN THE LAST DAYS THE MAJORITY WILL BE DECEIVED, take heed that it doesn’t happen to you” — “FALSE TEACHERS are actually SPEAKING SPELLS with the words of their FALSE DOCTRINES!”
That we would all be ‘ONE’ as Jesus prayed in John 17,
Jeff