Lux Lucet

The body of Rev. Billy Graham, who died February 21 at age 99, lies in the Capitol Rotunda as President Donald Trump, officials and dignitaries pay tribute to America’s most famous evangelist, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2018, in Washington.  (J. Scott Applewhite / The Associated Press) 

In the second year of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, became king…And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, yet not like his father David (2 Kings 14:1, 3).

Judge not, lest you be judged! How many times have Christians had that verse flung in their face when discussing some point of doctrine, usually with an unbeliever. This verse, wielded as if some all conquering shut down argument, seems to be the only passage of Scripture that many people know.

Now if Jesus actually meant what these people seem to think he meant – that all judgment of every sort by anyone is always wrong – ironically they also condemn themselves, for by speaking as they do they are judging Christians and telling them they are wrong to find fault with the words or actions of another.

But Jesus did not mean to condemn all judgment. He intended to condemn unrighteous judgment, that is to say, judgment by the wrong standard. This can be seen elsewhere in Scripture where Christ told his followers to “judge with righteous judgment.”

Further, in writing to Timothy the Apostle Paul advised his younger colleague that, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for,” among other things, “reproof [and] for correction.” That is to say, Scripture is to be used to judge the actions and the words of men.

But in his goodness to his people, God did not give us just doctrinal statements such as the ones of Jesus and Paul quoted above, he also gave us many examples in his Word of the application of these principles.

So what does it look like the Word of God to judge, that is to say, to evaluate the work of others. In the opinion of this author, the historical books of 1 and 2 Kings provide some of the best guidance in the Bible for how Christians are to “judge with righteous judgment.”

When introducing a new king of Israel or Judah, the author of 1 and 2 Kings provides a brief biographical sketch of the king, detailing who his mother and father were, the number of years he reigned, and a brief assessment of his accomplishments.

In some cases – David, Hezekiah, and Josiah, for example – the judgment is overwhelmingly positive. In others – Ahab and Manasseh to name two – it is quite negative. Another example is King Jehoram, the son of godly King Jehoshaphat, who was so bad that the Chronicler summarized his reign thus, “He was thirty-two years old when he became king. He reigned in Jerusalem eight years and, to no one’s sorrow, departed” (2 Chronicles 21:20).

There is a third group of kings whose reigns fall somewhere in between the two extremes. The Scripture assesses their reigns neither as entirely laudatory nor entirely condemnatory. One such example is quoted at the top of this post. In evaluating Amaziah’s reign, the author of Kings generally views him in a positive light. The author tells us King Amaziah, “Did what was right in the sight of the LORD.” That’s high praise. And yet, the author hedges what he says with the words, “yet not like his father David.” Amaziah did well, but he fell short of David’s standard in some important way or ways.

Likewise, there are kings whose reigns were, in general, viewed negatively but who did receive some praise. Jehoram, the son of king Ahab, is one such example. The Scripture says of him, “And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not like his father and mother; for he put away the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had made.”

My purpose in citing these examples of God’s evaluation of the kings of Judah and Israel is to show that there is a range to God’s judgment. Scripture does not simply praise and condemn, but evaluates men along a continuum, stating varying degrees of praise and condemnation for different individuals.

The evaluations seen in Kings and Chronicles, while interesting, are more than that. They are a clue for what it means to judge with righteous judgment. The good work of some men is more worthy of praise than that of others. Likewise, the evil deeds of some men are worse than those of others.

I mention all this by way of introducing the main point this post, which is to set forth a Biblical evaluation of the ministry of Billy Graham.

Graham, the most famous American evangelist of the post-war period, passed away February 21, 2018 at the age of 99. Although he was known principally for his evangelistic crusades, Graham’s fame went well beyond the sawdust trail. A counselor to Presidents, Graham was a very public figure, whose name, work and vocal cadences were familiar to the whole nation, even to those outside the traditional Evangelical community.

A measure of his influence seen from the fact that he is only the fourth private citizen whose body has lain in honor in the Capitol Rotunda.

Because of his influence on 20th century American Evangelicalism, it seemed good to take this opportunity to attempt a Biblical evaluation of Graham’s life and ministry.

Billy Graham, the Good

He preached Christ. It is not my purpose here to evaluate how well or how poorly he preached Christ. I will save that for later. But at the very least Billy Graham publically named the name of Christ for some sixty years and did so in places and to people many Christians would consider hopelessly lost.

In a recent discussion I had about Graham, someone brought up the point that Charles Spurgeon was converted at the preaching of a deacon who had been pressed into service as a speaker because the regular preacher was not available. By his own admission, this deacon was not a skilled speaker. Yet God used the stumbling, ill-prepared remarks of this deacon to save the most famous preacher of 19th century Great Britain, the Billy Graham of his age, as it were, Charles Spurgeon.

In that same discussion, a retired and faithful minister of the Gospel made the point that he knew many people who had come to Christ as a result of Graham’s evangelistic efforts. This man is someone I respect as an elder brother in the Lord and have no reason to think he is telling me anything but the truth.

God can use even men who preach the Word for the wrong reasons. Paul spoke of men who preached Christ out of envy and strife. The apostle went on to say that he rejoiced when Christ was preached, even if it was done in pretense rather than from sincerity (Philippians 1:15-18).

Second, Graham took his message outside the church walls. It is so easy as Christians to talk about Jesus only among other believers and in places we feel comfortable. Taking the Gospel to public venues such as Yankee Stadium as Graham famously did in his 1957 New York Crusade, or to Paul Brown Stadium here in Cincinnati as he did in 2002, is another matter.

As Christians, we can learn from Graham’s example of bringing Christ to the people rather than waiting for them to come to us.

Third, Graham famously avoided sexual scandals throughout his long career. Of course, avoiding sexual scandals does not make one a Christian, but it is commendable, especially for a famous and powerful figure such as Graham.

How many men, famous men, Christian men, have made shipwreck of their lives by marital infidelity? We probably all can think of examples, some famous, some not, of preachers whose careers have flamed out as a result of embarrassing sexual dalliances.

And the problem of sexual scandals is not limited just to preachers, either. The whole #MeToo movement was born out of the very public revelation that movie producer Harvey Weinstein spent decades abusing young women. He was fired by the board of the company he founded and may be facing criminal charges stemming from his immoral activities.

That Billy Graham avoided sexual scandal speaks well of him.

Cardinal Timothy Michael Dolan, center, speaks to mourners ahead of a funeral service at the Billy Graham Library for the Rev. Billy Graham, March 2, 2018.  According to an article in the New York Times, Dolan had originally intended to go to an ecumenical prayer service to honor Mr. Graham at New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral, but changed his plans when he received an invitation to the funeral in Charlotte (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Billy Graham, the Bad

If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine [the doctrine of Christ], do not receive him into your house not greet him, for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds (2 John 10, 11).

The most serious failing of Billy Graham’s ministry was his ecumenism. The Scriptures contain many warnings against believers carrying out ministry with unbelievers. One of them is quoted above. Sadly, Billy Graham ignored these warnings but sought alliances with Roman Catholics, Jews, and the Orthodox, and, as a result, shared in their sins of unbelief.

Graham’s involvement with, and approval of, prelates of the Antichrist Roman Church-State is well documented. In his article “Who Is The Man Most Responsible for Evangelicalism’s Movement Toward Rome?” Paul Elliott name Graham as, “The clear winner of this dubious distinction.” Writes Elliott,

As we noted in our last article, Billy Graham seemed to begin well, stating in the early days of his ministry that communism, Roman Catholicism, and Islam were the three greatest threats to the preaching of the Gospel. But as we also noted, within a few short years became a deconstructionist of the Reformation…

In the early 19502, Graham began to develop solid and enduring friendships with Roman Catholic prelates such as Fulton J. Sheen, archbishop (and later cardinal) of New York, and Richard Cushing, archbishop (also later cardinal) of Boston. As we shall see, these friendships with the enemies of Scripture and the Reformation would expand and deepen over the course of Graham’s life.

Graham’s enduring affinity for Rome can be seen in the comments of its representatives of upon his death.

• “There was no question that the Dolans were a Catholic family, firm in our faith, but in our household there was always a respect admiration for Billy Graham and the work he was doing to bring people to God” (Timothy Dolan, Cardinal, Archbishop of New York)
  
• “Today, we pray for the soul of the Rev. Billy Graham to the Lord he so deaerly loved and offer our condolences to his family. Billy Graham was a preacher of God’s Word not only in his sermons, but also in the very life he lived. His faith and integrity invited countless thousands around the world into a closer relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God for the ministry of Billy Graham” (Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops).
  
• “His Holiness Pope Frances was saddened to learn of the death of Reverend Billy Graham, and he offers heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and loved ones” (Pope Francis I).
  

To this, the words of Christ are most appropriate, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets.”

When the current occupant of the office of Antichrist and two of his prominent underlings offer their condolences, it is no honor to a Christian. Yet as far as I am aware, no one representing Billy Graham’s family or ministry made any statement to distance Graham from these wolves in sheep’s clothing.

One of the most damning assessments of Graham’s ministry came from a Jesuit writing in the July 1972 issue of The Catholic Digest. According to John Robbins, the Jesuit author wrote, “Billy Graham is orthodox. I have read nothing by him that is contrary to the Catholic faith.” This may very well be true. If so, it is hard to see how Graham could be considered a Christian evangelist in any but a nominal sense of the word.

But Graham’s spiritual adultery was not limited to dalliances with the Woman Who Rides the Beast. He also joined himself to Protestant liberals such as Robert Schuller. In a 1997 interview with Schuller, Graham went so far as to say that sinners could go to heaven apart from faith in Christ.

Schuller:     Tell me, what do you think is the future of Christianity?

Graham:     Well, Christianity and being a true believer – you know, I think there’s the Body of         Christ. This comes from all the Christian groups around the world, outside the             Christian groups. I think everybody that loves Christ, or knows Christ, whether             they’re conscious of it or not, they’re members of the Body of Christ…

Schuller:     What, what I hear you saying that it’s possible for Jesus Christ to come into human         hearts and soul and life, even if they’ve been born in darkness and have never had         exposure to the Bible. Is that a correct interpretation of what you’re saying?

Graham:    Yes, it is, because I believe that I’ve met people in various parts of the world in tribal         situations, that they have never seen a Bible or heard about a Bible, and never heard         of Jesus, buy they’ve believe in their hearts that there was a God, and they’ve tried to         live a life that was quite apart from the surrounding community in which they lived.

In contrast to Graham and Schuller, the Bible asks rhetorically, “And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?” There is no alternative route to heaven apart from faith in Christ Jesus, and to believe in him, men must first have heard of him.

Then there’s the issue of Graham’s Arminian Gospel. In contrast to the Biblical doctrines of grace, Arminians believe and teach, not that God chooses a people, but that people choose God. Graham is hardly alone in this. In fact, he follows in a long line of American Arminian evangelists stretching back to Charles Finney, whose Gospel message is some variant on “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.”

But this is not the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is about what Jesus objectively accomplished to save his people from their sins, not about the subjective experience of the believer.

Assessing Graham’s Life and Work

In light of the above, what conclusions can we draw about Graham’s life and work?

Speaking for myself, although Graham had some good things to say, and although very likely there were many individuals saved under his ministry, and although there were some aspects of his life that are admirable, these positives do not overcome the serious, long-term, well-documented deficiencies in his work.

I believe it is an error for Christians to associate with his ministry. For by doing so, they implicate themselves in the sins of ecumenism and false Gospel preaching that, far from being isolated instances in an otherwise admirable body of work. were an essential part of Graham’s preaching ministry for a period of some sixty years.

This conclusion, no doubt, will upset some. That is understandable. Many Evangelicals, myself among them, have seen, heard and read about Billy Graham their entire lives. Amid all the gross immorality, antichristian nihilism, and social upheaval endemic to our time, Graham’s grandfatherly presence has been a comfort to many.

Yet as Christians, we are called not to sentimental reverence for famous figures, but to be Bereans, actively searching the Scriptures to find out if what we’re being told is true. With Billy Graham, in far too many cases, it was not.