MONTREAT, N.C., June 8 - After more than five decades spent preaching to 210 million people in 185 lands, the Rev. Billy Graham is marooned in his log house on a mountaintop ridge.
The evangelist shuffles with a walker down a small ramp into his living room. He has prostate cancer, hydrocephalus and the symptoms of Parkinson's disease, and last year broke a hip and his pelvis. He says he leaves the mountain only three or four times a year, and cannot even remember his last time down.
"When you get to be 86 years of age as I am, all of the world is passing you by," he said, sitting on his front porch for a rare interview.
Nevertheless, Mr. Graham is now preparing to venture down the mountain to travel to New York City for another evangelistic crusade - a three-day outdoor revival meeting beginning June 24 in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens....
John, the answer to this one, is very simple, and I gave it to you before:
(AV) Matthew 10 33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. By your actions -- or better -- inactions in the Catholic Church, you are denying Christ. You have even an active denial by attending a Catholic Church:
Now if you are a Jehovah Witness, Seventh-Day Adventist, you do not believe in the eternity of hell. I suggest you listen to Gil Rugh's sermon on this on the actuality of hell. I would suppose you would be interested in the commentary on an ever lasting hell, which start to 28 minutes or so into the sermon. I'll just say his whole series the Book of Revelation is very good -- even if I were not a member of IHCC. :-)
GR 864 http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?currSection=sermonssource&sermonID=21403152742
I sincerely warn you, John, eternity is a very long time.
I do not care that I would be looked upon by the Catholic Church as a hypocrite. My Priest does not know that I do not believe all Catholic doctrines because I do not and will never communicate with the Priest about anything because I am not that comfortable engaging in interpersonal communication face to face with individuals. That is why I do not like Evangelical Protestant Church Services because at Evangelical Protestant Churches everybody is expected to engage in interpersonal communication face to face with individuals. And anyway, engaging in interpersonal communication with individuals face to face and joining an Evangelical Protestant Church have nothing whatsoever to do with salvation. The only thing that counts for salvation is taking Christ as Savior and that is that.
Sorry, John, according to your Roman Church you have to believe certain doctrines, or you would be a hypocrite in their eyes. I suppose if one keeps the money flowing and one doesn't put forth Christian statements then the priests would look the other way. Also a Christian will associate with Christians and not non-Christians in worship. So, yes, you would join a Christian Church and leave a Catholic one. Read Mike Gendron's articles. I have a new one for you, the second on the list, but the first one is still just fine. Look around for Mike on the Internet.
I do not want to associate with anybody because I am not that comfortable engaging in interpersonal communication face to face with individuals. That is why I do not like the church services at Evangelical Protestant Churches, because at Evangelical Protestant Churches everybody is expected to engage in interpersonal communication face to face with individuals. Engaging in interpersonal communication face to face with individuals is not a requirement for salvation is it? Are you stating that joining an Evangelical Protestant Church is a requirement for salvation? How am I pretending to be a Catholic? If I attend Mass every weekend then I am a Catholic regardless if I deny the unscriptural doctrines of the Catholic Church. Why are you assuming that all Catholics have to believe all Catholic doctrines? That is totally illogical to assume that all Catholics have to believe all Catholic doctrines.
John, if you are Christian your going to want to associate with other Christians. Perhaps I should state it this way, a Christian will leave an anti-Christian church as soon as possible.
Hypocrisy is pretending to be something you are not. When you go to the the Catholic Church your pretending to be a Catholic, if you reject some of the main parts of Catholicism, and still attend a Catholic Church you are practicing hypocrisy. See the pamphlet:
Russell, apparently you are not familiar with John Ankerberg. He is been doing a great job of explaining the gospel for years now -- and yes he has too many advertisements on his website, so I will just give you the search function for his website.
http://www.johnankerberg.org/search.htm
John is a Southern Baptist minister. His only fault is that he won't point out the errors of theology in other Baptists such as Billy Graham or Rick Warren. I suppose Covenant preachers are much the same way.
You should read the article on eschatology by one of our pastors:
http://www.biblebb.com/files/GR-ESCH.htm
you should look at the website of one of our former pastors, for more detailed theology then you may find on a Covenant theological site:
Russell, even when due respect to John Ankerberg, you are not going to argue a person into Christianity, even with hours of comments. Just like horses you can lead people to water but you can't force them to drink.
John Yurich - You say, "Graham is a Baptist minister and Baptist ministers do not preach false doctrines." That's akin to saying that a Christian does not sin.
The typical Baptist (not Reform) takes his theology from the hymnbook, and utterly is ignorant concerning the teaching of the Scripture.
My criticism of Graham has not been concerning his recommendation of a demonination. Rather, it is with the lack of substance of his message. Billy Graham is universally accepted because his message is non-offensive. But the Gospel of the Kingdom of God invariably stirs controversy -- read the epistles and the book of Acts.
That which Billy Graham preaches is an insipid "non-Gospel" which has no power to save.
Graham is a Baptist minister and Baptist ministers do not preach false doctrines. Baptist ministers preach about the need to take Christ as Savior in order to be saved, which is exactly what Graham preaches at the Crusades. Just because Graham does not tell Catholics, Eastern Orthodox or Non Evangelical Protestants who have taken Christ as Savior that they have to join an Evangelical Protestant Church does not mean that Graham is preaching a false gospel. When I took Christ as Savior at my brothers Non Denominational Church and if the minister had stated that I had to leave the Catholic Church and join an Evangelical Protestant Church I would have told the minister that it was none of his business what church I decided to be a member of after having taken Christ as Savior just as long as I disregard the unscriptural doctrines and adhere only to the scriptural doctrines of the Catholic Church, pay attention only to the scriptural parts of the Mass and every night when I go to bed rededicate my life to Christ and ask Him to forgive any sins that I may have committed during the day.
The Gospel of the Kingdom which Christ Jesus himself proclaimed AND TAUGHT requires much more than fifteen minutes to communicate. Indeed, a full day hardly is adequate to impart sufficient understanding so that an intelligent commitment may be made.
Jesus says that one ought count the cost before proceeding, lest he begin and be unable to complete the course.
Embrace of the Gospel demands careful thought; but the Billy Graham crusade is designed to evoke an emotional response.
Consider the so-called "gospel" which Billy Graham proclaims; how may it be construed to be the Gospel taught in the Scripture?
First of all, where is mention of the Kingdom of God -- after all, the Kingdom is the primary subject of the "good news" which Christ Jesus himself proclaimed and taught.
And where is repentance? Where is the constrained (KJV "strait") Way of Life? Where is sacrifice ("take up thy cross")? Where is endurance to the end? Where is baptism?
No, the gospel of Graham is but another, false gospel which, while profitable (in this life) to Graham and company, is ruin to those who embrace it; Galatians 1:8-9.
In what way am I a hypocrite? Just because I deny the unscriptural doctrines of the Catholic Church? It is totally illogical for Catholics and Protestants to assume that all Catholics believe all Catholic doctrines. Why do you keep stating that there are two requirements for salvation: (1)Take Christ as Savior and (2)Join an Evangelical Protestant Church? The Bible only gives one requirement for salvation and that is to take Christ as Savior. Since when is the Evangelical Protestant Churches the only True Churches and Non Evangelical Churches are False Churches?
Russell, Billy Graham has done some good. He has brought the Gospel too many people. I understand that at many of his crusades he has people to guide the new converts to churches in the area that the crusade to place -- that's good. However, he also has people guide these would be converts back to the Catholic Church, which is an abomination this is entirely evil.
John, if you say you have rejected some of the Catholic Church teachings then by definition you are a to one of these theological whore houses. Hypocrisy in a Christian is a grievous sin, and that person cannot be even considered a Christian. Look at the definition of hypocrisy in a dictionary, and I think you have been practicing this from your own words. I suggest you read this rather short pamphlet. The address will take you right to it.
The thousands who "walk the aisle" at Billy Graham "crusades" go away deceived, falsely thinking they have been "born again", when all they have experienced is a temporary and meaningless burst of emotion which wrought no permanent change and provided no spiritual benefit.
And thus are they immunized against subsequent encounters with the true Gospel found in the Scripture.
Why are you adding another requirement for salvation by stating that anybody that has taken Christ as Savior has to join an Evangelical Protestant Church in order to be saved? The Bible only gives one requirement for salvation and that is to take Christ as Savior and that is it. Why is so hard for you to comprehend that if Catholics take Christ as Savior that they can remain Catholic and still be saved if they disregard the unscriptural doctrines and adhere only to the scriptural doctrines of the Catholic Church, pay attention and participate only in the scriptural parts of the Mass and every night when they go to bed rededicate their life to Christ and ask Him to forgive any sins that they may have committed during the day?
Billy Graham's message, which he has basically memorialized -- thank God! -- has been true to the Scriptures. However, what has happened before and after that sermon, has often been very anti-Christian, such as sending people who are barely Catholics back into the grasp of the Catholic Church.
This short article explains some of the problems with Billy Graham:
COMMENTS | 
stever: "
michael hranek
stever
thank for your post.
it reminds me that genuine..."
