Questioner

I read your Q&A on Billy Graham. His statements to Robert Schuller on television in 1997 were very disturbing to me, as they should have been to any genuine believer. I went to the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association website and sent in a question, in the "contact us" section. I included the exact quotes, from your website, regarding Christ calling people out of the Muslim and Buddhist worlds and people going to Heaven who have never even heard the name Jesus. I asked them to either stand behind or disavow the comments that were made to Schuller in 1997. Below is the response I received. I ask you to please write me back with an explanation, as the comments I received from the BGEA seem to contradict the info on concerning Billy Graham on your website.

Message from "admin services" <adminservices@bgea.org> on Wed, 4 May 2005 14:19:55 -0400 -----
Subject: FW: Email Response
May 3, 2005,

Thank you for taking the time to write. It is good to hear from you.

We appreciate your interest and concern about the interview with Mr. Graham which was conducted by Rev. Robert Schuller. Mr.  Graham has faithfully and clearly preached the Gospel for over 50 years, and since the interview he has reaffirmed his belief in Christ as the only way of salvation: "In all our Crusades we place a prominent banner with Jesus' words, 'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.' We put that verse there because people live in a confused world, with so many competing religious voices calling men and women to follow them. But Christ is distinctive and exclusive about the way to God. There can be no true Christianity apart from Him. While some of the ethics and idealism of other religions may run parallel to Christian teachings, the fact remains, as stated by Jesus Christ, 'No man cometh unto the Father but by me' (John 14:6, KJV).

"Over the years I have met people with many religious and philosophical views. Many of them have had deep commitment to their beliefs. But I have become even more convinced of the uniqueness and the truth of Christ and His Gospel. And I want to continue preaching it as long as possible."

We trust that you will pray that Mr. Graham will always correctly interpret God's Word and be sensitive to the Spirit's leading in every situation.

God bless you,

Marsha Sherrill
Administrative Services Correspondent
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association

Answer

The statements that Billy Graham made to Schuller were word for word. His ministry is simply doing "damage control." Billy Graham said what he said and the meaning was clear. His staff's answers to you never really answered your questions, but they simply said things in such a way that could still support his statements to Schuller.

They said Billy always preached that Jesus is the only way to Heaven, and that's what he told Schuller, which was that "The Buddhist believes they are going to heaven through Buddha, but in reality, Buddha is really Jesus, but they don't know that, but God's OK with that"--what utter nonsense! Billy doesn't understand the power of the gospel and the actual name of Jesus, and the sovereignty of God in getting the true gospel to anyone, anytime, and anywhere.

Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "Tony Capoccia's Questions and Answers" by:

Tony Capoccia
Bible Bulletin Board
Box 119
Columbus, New Jersey, USA, 08022
Our websites: www.biblebb.com and www.gospelgems.com
Email: tony@biblebb.com
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